Young Storykeeper Volume III

128 | STORYKEEPERS VOLUME III AGE TEN | 129
AGE TEN
overnight and I waited here for you because I knew
you would be my friend.”
They hugged and Tom said, “Your new name is
Aran because you were the lighthouse on Aranmore
Island.”
They went around that day telling everybody that
Aran was the lighthouse and that he had morphed into
a small boy overnight.
But no one believed them! They just said there
was no lighthouse there and pretended that there
wasn’t.
As the years went by, Aran became more and
more depressed. One day he was sleeping and he
had a dream: it was about his days as a lighthouse
- they were rough, all the seagulls mocking him, the
waves splashing up against him.
At that moment, Aran realised that he was lucky
to be human and that he had had his turn being
famous. So instead of sulking every day because no
one knew except Tom about him being famous, he
should go out and enjoy being human and not waste
his time sulking.
From that day on, Aran did not sulk. He always
tried hard in everything and he was grateful for
everything that anyone gave him.
Alison Butler
Co Dublin
THE LIGHTHOUSE WHO USED TO TALK
There once was a lighthouse on Aranmore Island, that
wanted to become famous.
All the seagulls said, “You will never become
famous.”
One day a little boy (whose name was Tom by
the way) came along and he heard the lighthouse talk.
He sat there for hours until he had to go for dinner.
The next day he brought a few of his friends to hear
the lighthouse talk and the day after that he brought
the news cameras and soon the whole of Ireland knew
about the lighthouse that talked.
The lighthouse was famous and it didn’t even
know it. Then one day the boy came alone and he
started to talk to the lighthouse. They became friends
and the boy told the lighthouse the story of how the
it had become famous.
The lighthouse was shouting, “Yes! I am
famous!”
They talked a bit more and then Tom had to go
because it was getting late but he didn’t go before
telling the lighthouse he would come again tomorrow.
Then he was off.
The next day, Tom came again like he said but
the lighthouse wasn’t there! But there was a pale boy
with freckles and brown hair standing in its place.
Tom went over and said, “What is your name?”
He said, “I don’t know because it’s me, the
lighthouse. I changed from a lighthouse to a boy