“my lighthouse, my lighthouse, shining in the darkness, i will follow you…
my lighthouse, my lighthouse, i will trust the promise, you will carry me safe to shore…”.*
the first person i think of when i see a lighthouse is crunch. we spent so much time together going from long island lighthouse to long island lighthouse, it’s an instant connect. i sent him this photo of the light on the kenosha channel leading into the harbor.
we are lucky to live close to this harbor area. any day we don’t feel like getting in littlebabyscion or big red to drive out to a trail we walk down along the lake. it’s beautiful. and never the same. the foghorn sounds through misty days and is like the sound of mourning doves – gentle, somewhat wistful, always welcome.
as much as i think about mountains, i have been – my whole life – a sea-level-girl. i’ve never lived far from water – big water. long island sound, the atlantic ocean, the gulf of mexico, lake michigan. i’d go walk the beach winter, spring, summer, fall. i’d take my red ball-and-chain round am/fm transistor radio and a beach towel and soak up summer sun. i’d go snorkeling or diving or boating or fishing. it used to be – and still is true – that big water (and small water) is healing for me. it gives me breath.
“in my wrestling and in my doubts
in my failures you won’t walk out
your great love will lead me through
you are the peace in my troubled sea, oh oh
you are the peace in my troubled sea
in the silence, you won’t let go
in the questions, your truth will hold
your great love will lead me through
you are the peace in my troubled sea, oh oh
you are the peace in my troubled sea“*
the lighthouse. it’s not hard to grasp the lyricist’s meaning. the divine – whatever or whoever that is for each of us – stays with us, holds us, holds on, lights the way. i suppose i should delve further into this songwriter’s political leanings and social consciousness, for i have found that many of the artists in this genre are hypocritically biased and sway away from equality, instead, lurking in the fringes of extremism. but for right now, i just want to remain – momentarily – a little bit uninformed. for this moment, i want to linger in some beautiful lyrics, a powerful song that my ukulele band sang many, many times.
the lighthouse of the harbor here is red. fire island lighthouse is black and white. montauk point lighthouse is white with a brick red stripe.
with those, time spent adrift at sea is lit, protection is concentrated candlepower.
our own personal lighthouses – those wise ones around us, our god, our universe-mother-earth – they light the way. countless times i have felt the strong arms of someone carrying me to shore, helping me breathe in the midst of the storm, holding steady in the turmoil.
“light their way when the darkness surrounds them. give them love, let it shine all around them.” (richard carpenter)
lighthouses. even on the top of a mountain, even in the desert, even in the amber waves.
“life is slippery. here, take my hand.” (h. jackson browne, jr., author)
the h. jackson browne, jr. card is in my studio. it reminds me that lighthouses aren’t the only lighthouses.
“fire before us, you’re the brightest;
you will lead us through the storms…” (*rend collective)
*****
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