The Lighthouse
By John Herlihy

The lighthouse stands stately and tall on a lonely headland,
Whose equivalent on earth would be an eroded badland.
Both are characterized by waves and dunes, like brothers;
Both are left in darkness, the lighthouse shines for others.

Whether by day or night, the lighthouse keeps constant vigil,
Steady and impervious with nary a single cause to stir a ripple.
Gathering evidence of the ocean’s travails against the wind,
It sees into the depths of a world shrouded heavily in human sin.

The light shines its beacon clear to the distant horizon,
Paving the way in a manner that forms a bright impression.
A person could walk to Zanzibar in a journey of blue on blue;
Sea and sky wrapped in elements that remind us of what is true .

The fretful headland looks toward the mainland many miles away,
Not quite free, and not sure whether it has permission to stay.
The highest of a string of underwater mountains far beneath,
That rose from the ocean floor as a jaw bone with ragged teeth.

The moonlight reflected on watery dunes desiring to be brave;
The mystery of divine illumination reflected across every wave.
The steady beam of the lighthouse provides a light beam of safety,
Reaching 360 degrees across the horizon, measured, not hasty.

Night after night, the air sings with the hum of the noble lantern,
Music that echoes among the stars from here to the Planet Saturn.
The light carries no blame, only surveys the ocean on a routine search,
Not accusing the danger of the rocks, only over-seeing from its perch.

Similarly, we carry within us a glowing light that turns and turns,
A solitary lighthouse whose inner light simply burns and burns.
This lighthouse keeps its lonely vigil to watch over the sea of life,
An inner eye watches as the light cuts thru the darkness like a knife.