Young Storykeeper Volume III

242 | STORYKEEPERS VOLUME III AGE TWELVE | 243
THE GREAT PROTECTOR OF THE SEA
Ellen Curry
Co Armagh
As the sun rises on the Wild Atlantic Way, a
statuesque lighthouse has appeared,
The sun lays in a distant view,
The beautiful balmy waves come
crawling against the crispy rocks and drench
the sand,
The birds circle in a tender manner
around the intense light shining from the tip
of the lofty lighthouse,
Climbing the seventy-nine twisting
upward stairs is a piece of heaven as you
watch the views get further and further away,
Reaching the final step, a peculiar
sensation grows in my stomach,
The blinding light beams in my eyes as I
see my reflection through the glass window,
The smell of fresh paint enters my nostrils
and the noise of footsteps and children
playing on the beach echoes in my cold ears,
As the sun falls into the bottom of the
ocean,
The only light to be seen is the glowing
light from the lighthouse which towers over
the shadows from below,
The choppy waves crash against the
saturated rocks,
The eerie ghosts leave the shipwrecks
after hibernating during daylight,
The lighthouse keeper turns the key
inside the rusted lock,
Looking out the dusty windows there is
nothing to see but black,
The silence is unnatural, not one person
in sight,
And still the beaming light works hard
to protect the incoming ships approaching
the docks.
ARIA’S LIGHTHOUSE
Aria looked at the striped lighthouse. She
loved watching the water spray upon the
rocks, the black and white lighthouse
standing elegantly above them. She liked to
think of it as a runaway princess, glued to
the spot by a spell. It was the most beautiful
building ever, in her mind. But even beautiful
things can cause tragedies.
When Aria had arrived on the island,
the lighthouse keeper Tanya told them all
about the disapearance.
“Twenty seven years ago next week, a
girl, her brother, her cousin and her parents
were all visiting this island. We are a closely
knit community around here, so they felt
right at home. Then tragedy struck. The two
girls were walking by the lighthouse. It was
blowing a gale and they were next to the
cliff. The wind must have pitched them over
the cliff. Or at least that’s what we think. We
never found the bodies, see.”
Aria’s parents looked mildly interested.
They didn’t like Tanya much, although Aria
thought her very interesting. As she told the
story, Aria looked on so intently that Tanya
might as well have been talking about the
apocolypse.
When Tanya left, her parents began to
talk.
“Now Aria, don’t get frightened. Its just
a –”
“I don’t like her at all. It was like she
was trying to scare us-”
“Even if it is true, it was a freak accident
and-”
“Mum, Dad, I am not five! As if I would
be scared, anyway. And Tanya is nice,” Aria
had said. In fact, she thought that Tanya
looked cool. She had long black hair, a
roman nose with a piercing in it and was
about forty.
There wasn’t a lot to do on the island
so Aria decided she would spend the day at
the lighthouse. And soon, that was all she
did. She would go to the lighthouse and
Tanya soon became her friend. They would
talk until the cows came home. But then
something truly terrible happened.
It was the night of the anniversary. All
the islanders gathered in the pub. That is all
but Tanya.
“Go and fetch her, Aria,” said Matt, the
kind barman.
So Aria ran to the lighthouse, rushed
up the decrepit stairs... to find Tanya sitting
there.
“Sit down,” she sounded cold and
haughty. “Before the inevitable I must explain
myself. Twenty seven years ago today, I
walked the same path as you just did. With
my cousin.”
Aria gasped.
Tanya explained. “Her brother and
parents were inside. So I led her outside. I
had never liked her and she had found out,
to her own ignorance, something that could
have ruined me. I pushed her - at thirteen
years old I killed her. And I knew that I would
have to hide. So I did. Went to the mainland
and came back five years later. They thought
I was dead. And you are my friend and were
very close to finding out. So I must kill you
too.”
Annie McCarthy
Co Cork
LIGHTHOUSE RESCUE MISSION
The glorious glow of Sunny Bay Lighthouse
had shone through my bedroom for the past
twelve years of my life. Its light had always
sent me to sleep peacefully but tonight was
different.
There was no light. No light! No
guidance!
I put my phone down immediately and
got up from where I was sitting on my bed.
Something was wrong.
I flung open my window and peered out
at the dull empty lighthouse. It had all of a
sudden lost its welcoming and friendly aura.
It now stood alone, stark against the sea and
sky. It seemed my neighbours had noticed
the lack of bright light as they too stood
watching from their windows.
Suddenly an idea sparked in my mind.
No, don’t be ridiculous Emily, I thought.
That’ll never work. But I still found myself
reaching for my phone to contact my friends.
GATHER ALL YOUR LIGHTS, the text
said, AND BRING THEM TO SUNNY BAY
LIGHTHOUSE.
After the text had been sent, I rushed
around the house, gathering lights that varied
from crystal-shaped ones to large twinkling
baubles.
“I’ll be back in a minute!” I called to my
parents, a large box in my hands. I ran as
fast as my legs would carry me to find most
of my friends already there. I was overjoyed
to see a boxful of lights next to each person.
“Come on! Let’s go!” I exclaimed excitedly.
Luckily the door was already unlocked,
so all we had to do was climb a very large
quantity of stairs. We were energised from
our excitement so we stomped up quickly
enough.
Thirty minutes later, all our lights had
been woven and hung around the inside
of the small lighthouse. “Well, here goes
nothing,” I said as I turned on the lights. Just
then everyone let out a gasp of amazement.
It was magical!
I let out a sigh of relief, the lighthouse
was saved. I sat down and watched in awe
with the other children. This was the best
night ever!
I went home a while later, exhausted
but happy. “Good night,” I yawned, struggling
up the stairs to my room.
I flung myself onto the comfort of
my bed and noticed the soft glow of the
lighthouse illuminating my room. I smiled as
it softly sent me to sleep once again.
Aobh Daly
Co Cork