Back before there were computers, radar, sonar, and global positioning devices, seafarers relied on their compasses and the lightkeepers to protect them from the dangerous, jagged coastline. These lighthouses were not automated, had to be tended by hand, along with the warning bells that had to be wound ever few hours. Lone lightkeepers lived in tiny houses alongside the lighthouses. Sometimes these men brought their wives and children to live in the lighthouse. Sometimes these children had to help tend the light, wind the bell, and do whatever else was required.
The wind howled and the rain pelted the roof and the side of the house facing the water. Giant waves crashed against the rocky shoreline, rumbling like thunder. Eight-year-old Kathryn tossed in her bed, tugging her covers up over her blonde curls to muffle the frightening noises coming from outside. Her older sister, Sara, had already gotten out of bed to go and help her father wind the bell in the lighthouse tower. Kathryn was all alone in the house.
Then she heard the sound of the foghorn wailing, and then the insistent beam from the light made its round, lighting her room like it was daytime. Kathryn crawled out of bed and crept toward the window. She could see her sister and her father coming out of the lighthouse, their shadows moving slowly along the narrow passage between the lighthouse and their tiny little house.
Kathryn felt better knowing they would soon be back in the house, tucked safely into their beds. The blanket of blackness came suddenly, swallowing up the light. Kathryn's heart raced. "Sara! Father!" she yelled, running toward the door.
Water rushed from under the door and came down the chimney, dowsing the fire that had been keeping the house warm. Kathryn picked up the lone lantern from the kitchen table and crept closer to the door. She hesitated, then lifted the latch and let the door creak open into the darkness.
"Sara! Father!" she yelled again.
Tears trickled down her cheeks as she stood alone in the darkness. Then she heard Rusty, their old dog whimpering. She took a deep breath and stepped out into the night with the lantern in her hand. She moved slowly toward the sounds, her heart pounding in her chest.
