Young Storykeeper Volume III

88 | STORYKEEPERS VOLUME III AGE NINE | 89
THE CAT WHO SAVED THE SAILORS
Hello, my name is Bob. I am a 12 year old
cat and I have lived at Hook Lighthouse all
my life. I love it here. I eat very well living in a
lighthouse – there are always mice to catch.
I especially love the leftover salmon that my
master John Smith sometimes gives me.
He is the lightkeeper at Hook Lighthouse
now but they change every few weeks.
Everyone knows everyone here on
Hook peninsula. There are farms and shops
and of course, Loftus Hall, the big scary
house - empty except for the ghosts. I can
see them all from the top of the lighthouse.
When I am home with my master John, I
like to watch him work on the big light, but
only after my nap of course. Some days
he cleans the glass for hours and hours,
or paints the lighthouse with fresh black or
white paint, checks that there is enough oil
to keep the light burning, trims the wick or
makes sure the matches are dry.
One day John went out to post a letter
to his brother in America to say that he
would soon be visiting, after he finished his
shift at The Hook. On that day, John said
he would be back before dark because there
was a big ship coming in to Waterford that
night, which was carrying lots of oil. If that
ship crashed, it would be a disaster – lots
of sea animals would die and John would
be in serious trouble. When John got back,
he said he had got a flat tyre and had to
walk all the way home, pushing his heavy old
bike. It was such a long way from the post
office and he was so tired, so John lay down
to have a quick nap before the ship was to
pass. I curled up and fell asleep on his bed
beside him.
Sometime later the wind woke me up
and I realised that it must be getting quite
close to when the ship was due to pass and
John was still asleep! I ran to the top of
the lighthouse to see if I could see the ship
coming and there it was, almost upon the
rocks! I tried to wake John but he remained
fast asleep.
I climbed up on the shelf above his bed
and pushed the matches down on top of
him and he woke with a jump. I pawed the
clock beside his bed and he realised what
time it was. We rushed upstairs and John
lit the light as quickly as he could. The ship
was able change its course for Waterford
Harbour just in time. It sailed by as if nothing
had ever happened but John and I knew how
close we had come to disaster.
The next day, when John came back
from the shop, I could smell the salmon from
his bag. He had brought me a treat for saving
the day. Life at a lighthouse is never dull!
Trudy Devoy Murphy
Co Wicklow
THE MOUSE AND THE
LIGHTHOUSE
Once upon a time there was a mouse who
lived with an old lady in a lighthouse. One
day the old lady went to the dentist and she
left the mouse a note. Unfortunately, the old
lady didn’t realise the mouse couldn’t read,
so he just went to his little house inside the
lighthouse and fell asleep.
But the mouse was woken up by a large
bird. The bird had brought him some food to
keep him going until the old lady returned.
This made the mouse really happy.
He then heard a noise coming from down at
the bottom of the lighthouse. He ran down
to see what was going on – and he couldn’t
believe his eyes!
A boat was heading straight for the
lighthouse. The mouse knew he had to do
something fast. He ran as quickly as he
could to the top of the lighthouse and set
the light flashing, to warn the forthcoming
boat.
When the old lady returned from the dentist
and heard what the mouse had done, she
gave him the biggest reward ever – a HUGE
block of cheese! He was delighted.
Hooray! The mouse had saved the day
and the lighthouse stood tall for many years
to come.
Ben McAleer
Co Antrim
ADVENTURE IN THE LIGHTHOUSE
“That was a great lunch,” said Pat.
“Yeah, what?” shouted Luke.
“Look at that!” Pat said, pointing at their
hotel, now collapsed.
“I’m glad the manager suggested this
lighthouse,” said Luke, staring up at the
lighthouse.
“I was thinking that we would have to
go home.”
“Let’s go inside, it’s chilly out here “
said Pat.
They went in.
Suddenly they heard voices.
“We’ll dump these sparklers in the
basement and tomorrow we’ll come back
and take the drugs.”
The boys fled from the lighthouse.
“I think we should set a trap,” said Luke.
“Yeah,” said Pat.
So they did.
The next morning at 7 o’clock, they
were hidden in the basement with two
Gardaí.
At 9pm they came in.
The two boys and the two Gardaí
loomed out of the shadows.
They were so stiff they couldn’t move.
One of the bad guys punched a Garda
in the face and he fell down unconscious.
The other brought out a gun and shot a
Garda in the arm. Luke kicked a guy and he
fell down as well. Pat was shot in the leg and
went down.
The last bad guy aimed his gun and
pulled the trigger. Nothing happened, it was
empty! Luke raised his leg and kicked him
in the face.
A day later they were walking out of
court and the bad guys were bundled off to
prison.
It was a happy ending (except Pat and
Luke could not go back to the lighthouse
and had to go home).
Patrick Gordon
Co Kildare
LIGHTHOUSE DREAMS
My little lighthouse
Striped with red and grey,
No one can separate us,
No one can take my lighthouse away.
I sit in my bedroom,
At the top of the tower,
Watching the sea,
Counting ships by the hour.
How I love my dear lighthouse,
With the lovely light that shines,
Going round and round,
Infinite times!
Anna Simms
Co Dublin