A Trustworthy Guardian
A lighthouse
stands lofty,
tall and straight,
erect in its stark
simplicity.
Its light
beams out
across the waves,
rotating,
warning all
who come too near
that the
face of death,
here, rears its ugly head.
With breakers crashing
onto the rocks
around its base,
and the spray lifting
forty feet or more,
one feels the force
of the water
as it plunges
back again
into the surging foam.
This beacon
is a constant
emission,
a guiding light
to all who venture
out upon the sea
in all kinds
of vessels.
Its light
pierces the darkness,
unrelenting in its
gyration,
sending a signal
to forewarn.
A vigilant
and trustworthy guardian,
and an assuagement,
for all those
mariners
who are
ocean bound.
poem by Ernestine Northover
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A Little Light
IN THE roughest of seas,
a warship wages war with a raging storm
in absent abyss of light,
First mate shouts out 'ship',
as he points to light in the night.
Warships send a signal of warning
(no response, no reply)
Warships send a signal of warning again,
but, a warship will not give way nor give in.
(no response, no reply) ,
Warship captain, at his wits limit, is very irrate.
His reply, send a signal with this warning,
'I will run you down and damn you to dark-
ness, to an eternal night of the abyss.
(a response, the reply)
Damn me? Damn me? Damn me
to eternal darkness of the abyss?
By the eternal light of my lighthouse,
run me down and you shall fly
WHEN WARSHIPS HAVE WINGS! ! !
A captain of a warship so quick to judge,
with all his weapons of war could not win a war
over a little light, Hmmmmmm
Peace.... and let your little light shine my friends
poem by Randy Hogan
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Guiding Light
the road is long, and the road is tough
but we have not traveled it enough.
we do not know what lurks in the dark corners
or behind every shadow.
but our faith and love is our guiding light.
and will always shine bright.
this light will be like a lighthouse beacon
leading you home, and knowing
you'll never be alone.
this guiding light not only shines in our hearts and minds
but will last for all of time.
this is the light of the LORD above,
who always gives his guiding love.
if you guide your heart in the right direction
it will always seek perfection.
look around and you will see
that all nations are longing to be free.
just like a ship stranded at sea
this light is there for you and me.
the mysteries to life we must unravel
for it's a long hard road that we must travel.
so seek the lord and you will find
that true love will unwind.
poem by Louis Rams
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False Bay (Collins sestet)
(after Matthew Arnold)
Tonight over the sea there are small lights,
Cape Town against Table Mountain lying bright
where it is flat against the evening sky
and in the distance a liner passes by
while the surging spray breaks over False Bay,
forevermore on Africa waves toss and play.
The stream of life did into the sea go
with joy, grace and hope in its ebb and flow
but debris, broken pieces are washed ashore
with pollution caught in the breaking roar
while the surging spray breaks over False Bay,
forevermore on Africa waves toss and play.
Stars sparkle and the light wind furls through your hair
while on the beach we are the only pair
and you swear to be true eternally,
a bright beacon in the darkness we see
while the surging spray breaks over False Bay,
forevermore on Africa waves toss and play.
[Reference: “Dover Beach” by Matthew Arnold.]
poem by Gert Strydom
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Ocean Breakers
She went to water;
she always did.
The heaving ocean
matched her heavy breathing;
it was a Ocean of Tears
like hers.
The swells crash
against the shore
relentlessly;
life was relentless too.
The foam;
Anger in the Water that day.
She went to water
she always did,
moving among the sand dunes,
face against the wind.
The sea gulls overhead;
caw! caw! caw!
She lifts her arms,
the wind blows her sleeves
making a flapping sound;
she could hear whispers
between the breakers,
she could hear weeping
among the retreating waves.
She stood there
on the Edge of Forever.
There is no end to the ocean.
Every day it calls to the Sun
and makes it rise.
.
Every night it extinguishes it.
She could walk to China;
she could
and no one would know;
no one would know.
The voice said
'I thought I would find you here'
Waves crashing
more soothing now
two tracks in the sand.
Sad swells
rise again
and retreat;
time and ocean breaks
bring them back together again.
poem by Lonnie Hicks
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The Light at Killintringan (song)
The mouth of the harbour here quietly kissed
blue waves that waltzed from Kilkeel home to us
The springtime sun faded to "love's old sweet song"
And the light at Killintringan shone on
But your fingertips on my lips couldn't still
The secret fears of a working class kid
That you were too good was my very first thought
As the light at Killintringan came on
(chorus)
The beams from the lighthouse turned through the night
Lighting the perils hidden from sight
And we were the summer that never would fade
Our love like the doeskin bound for the blade
You turned seventeen and I turned from your heart
With Killintringan light lost in the dark
The autumn was passing, and snow would soon fall
Time didn't fix us, and it just kept on
Then, tears on your letter, we fell once again
As Killintringan light shone through the rain
The beams from the lighthouse turned through the night
Lighting the perils hidden from sight
And now looking back love, it all seems so plain
But I couldn't find a way to explain
The simplest of words wouldn't ever fly free
As Killintringan light searched o'er the sea
And down on his knees in the Queen Marg'ret Hall
underneath your photograph on the wall
A guy who still saw what he saw in your eyes
when Killintringan light scanned the night skies
The beams from the lighthouse turned through the night
Lighting the pearls there in plain sight
05 10 07
Early Works - Candle
The lonely candle sits in the window
like the guiding light of a lighthouse beacon.
A sentinel with a warming glow
whose fingers reach into the darkness
holding out hope for ware faring souls,
which in the darkness have lost their way.
9 February 1987
poem by David Harris
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0012 'Only one life was lost in this disaster
The water’s not so deep
down here, it’s still stirred
on the sea-bed by the off-shore tide.
The seaweed waves in slow rhythm, almost gracefully.
Sometimes a crab, going somewhere not apparent
with laborious stubborn intent
displaces very slightly the bone-white skeleton
lying on its back, almost relaxed, almost temporary,
as if waiting for time to give some signal
to turn those stark claws back into a son’s hands
or the current turns a few degrees the eyeless head,
the young jaw, as a light sleeper
in a dream, submissive to the tide;
peaceful; down here
in this filtered light
death, grief, tears, a mother's memories
seem unknown, have no place.
poem by Michael Shepherd
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A Study (A Soul)
She stands as pale as Parian statues stand;
Like Cleopatra when she turned at bay,
And felt her strength above the Roman sway,
And felt the aspic writhing in her hand.
Her face is steadfast toward the shadowy land,
For dim beyond it looms the light of day;
Her feet are steadfast; all the arduous way
That foot-track hath not wavered on the sand.
She stands there like a beacon thro' the night,
A pale clear beacon where the storm-drift is;
She stands alone, a wonder deathly white;
She stands there patient, nerved with inner might,
Indomitable in her feebleness,
Her face and will athirst against the light.
poem by Christina Georgina Rossetti
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Forewarn me
forewarn me, impending doom.
forewarn me, eternal gloom.
forewarn me, end is near.
forewarn me, I do not care.
forewarn me, choices I make.
forewarn me, chances I take.
forewarn me, my heart may break.
forewarn me, for goodness sake.
forewarn me, better days yet to come.
forewarn me, pills on my tongue.
forewarn me, will be alright.
forewarn me, wish me good night.
forewarn me, talking in my head.
forewarn me, can not return from the dead.
forewarn me, people will be cruel.
forewarn me, not always the rule.
forewarn me, life is not how you see it today.
forewarn me, the answer is not to give it away.
forewarn me, the time it will take to turn it around.
forewarn me, feeling lost, one day feeling found.
forewarn me, hard lessons learned, take it in stride.
forewarn me, not so easy, yet not alone in the fight.
forewarn me, life can be amazing, leaving you wanting more.
forewarn me, fate can open a door.
forewarn me, can be my own worst enemy.
forewarn me, hang in there when wanting to flee.
forewarn me, can not see what's ahead.
forewarn me, keeping from being mislead.
forewarn me, voices will calm, I'll get back on track.
forewarn me, time wasted, can never get back.
forewarn me, get up, keep going, one step at a time.
forewarn me, if life was so easy everyone would get in that line.
poem by Gary Kedron
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The light's in my head - Villanelle
There's a light in the sickroom that never goes dead,
Though daylight is dimming, through the still open curtain-
But the light's in my head; the light's in my head!
He lies in a stupor, but calls out from his bed;
And he never complains, but you fear that he's hurting-
There's a light in the sickroom that never goes dead.
She doesn't sleep nights, but sleeps daytimes instead;
Her breathing's still even, but death's near for certain-
But the light's in my head; the light's in my head!
First they said stroke, and then heart attack- dread!
With the new diagnosis, with death he is flirting-
There's a light in the sickroom that never goes dead.
There's cancer and heart disease, so lightly we tread;
It's bad news for sure- her aneurysm bursting! -
But the light's in my head; the light's in my head!
It's all here inside me now, all that I've said,
Now what's left in memory's darkness, I'm cursing;
There's a light in the sickroom that never goes dead-
And the light's in my head- the light's in my head!
poem by Patti Masterman
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My Mother's Memory
There is one bright star in heaven
Ever shining in my night;
God to me one guide has given
Like the sailor's beacon light,
Set on every shoal of danger
Sending out its warning ray
To the homebound weary stranger
Looking for the land-locked bay.
In my farthest, wildest wand'rings
I have turned me to that love,
As a diver, neath the water,
Turns to watch the light above.
poem by John Boyle O'Reilly
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Cinema Screen
Light's patterns freeze:
Frost on our faces.
Light's pollen sifts
Through the lids of our eyes ...
Light sinks and rusts
In water; is broken
By glass ... rests
On deserted dust.
Light lies like torn
Paper in corners:
A rock-pool's pledge
Of the sea's return.
Light, wrenched at the edges
By wind, looks down
At itself in wrinkled
Mirrors from bridges.
Light thinly unweaves
Itself through darkness
Like foam's unknotting
Strings in waves ...
Now light is again
Accumulated
Swords against us ...
Now it is gone.
Submitted by Stephen Fryer
poem by Arthur Seymour John Tessimond
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Sonnet: Light
How can the wick of life rise high aflame,
When Pride’s mantle surrounds its dusky hue?
How will the man of ego take self-blame,
When selfishly, he denies others’ due?
Light is to dispel darkness from the earth!
Light is to shine aloft for everyone!
Light is to give warmth, sitting ’fore a hearth!
Light is to see and enjoy like the sun!
And that is why the lighthouse is kept high!
And that is why the rail-way gate has light!
And that is why the signal-lights shouldn’t die!
And that is why the headlights should be bright!
Let light not dazzle, blinding others’ eyes;
Light is a virtue; don’t make it a vice!
5-26-2002 by Dr John Celes
poem by John Celes
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In The Enchanted Tower
THE waves in thunderous menace break
Upon the rocks below my tower,
And none will dare the Sea-king's power
And venture shipwreck for my sake.
Yet once,--my lamp a path of light
Across the darkling sea had cast--
I saw a sail; at last, at last,
It came towards me through the night.
My lamp had been the beacon set
To lead the ship through mist and foam,
The ship that came to take me home,
To that far land I half forget.
But since my tower is built so high,
And surf-robed rocks curl hid below,
I quenched my lamp--and, weeping low
I saw my ship go safely by!
poem by Edith Nesbit
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The lunar blossom
I am the flower of the moon
Who stands tall in the darkness
I am the light of shadows
Who wander perpetually
I rest in serene silence
The music of the night
The dusk showers fall
And I stay ablaze
As small as a mouse
With purpose larger than life
I sail ebony waters
Obsidian winds fill my sails
I am the boat of life
The beacon of hope
I am seemingly irrelevant
Only to blind who do not seek their truths
Through the day I stay
My light spears dusk like tusk
I am the flower of the moon
Who stands tall in darkness
poem by Logan Fulk
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The Light House Stands Tall In An Island
to storms
that we can do nothing about
the light house
stands proud
tall and unchallenged
on a beacon of
light
it tells the world
the storms have not
bent my light
the mists are not enough
to conceal it
when i save lives
and ships
no one owes
to thank
me
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
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The Lighthouse
The Lighthouse
By: Adam M. Snow
Come to my lighthouse;
so that I may light your way.
Come to my lighthouse;
a place for you to stay.
Where darkness hides;
the demons flees.
For I'll provide;
and you'll be at ease.
Come to my lighthouse;
for all is welcome;
even your spouse;
and those who are numb.
Come to my lighthouse;
my friend, my child.
to a place where there is no louse;
for you are also mild.
Come to my lighthouse;
so that I may light your way.
Come to my lighthouse;
a place for you to stay.
poem by Adam M. Snow
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Light.
Light me a light any kind of light,
Just shine its beam into my darkest night,
For like a child I stay up in fright,
So light me a light any light tonight.
Candlelight, moonlight any light is just right,
For in that light I might find my might!
Don’t sing me a song, don’t hold me tight,
Just light me a light, any light tonight.
Light me a light to assist my sight,
Just my naked eye darkness cannot fight,
So before darkness gets a chance to bite,
Light me a light any kind of light.
Flickering, glaring or outright bright,
I don’t care what kind just light me a light,
All I need is darkness away tonight,
So light me a light any kind of light.
poem by Barak Al'Mondia
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Defining the Indefinable Light
As I inched away from your love
I walk into darkness of a deep sea,
Enveloped in dark clouds,
Layer upon layer of waves
You are the Light of lights
Of heavens and earth
Light the blinding Light!
Light the awakening Light!
A speaking Light that begun
before the birth of question
Light coursing beyond the answers
that beget but questions!
Light a beckoning
Light a reckoning Light!
A Light too high to cede to our darkness
poem by Frank Lisa IndiRa Francesca Roger Platt Cornish Ma
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What Is Pain
What is pain but rejoice leading towards death, we live our lives, some good, some bad, troubled times, and untroubled past, we live and love, we love and live, but for some of us, we may live to love, but we dont love to live, some of us, misjudged by fate, unrightly charged, unrightful hate, some of us, we flow with time, some of us, we get bound by it, some of us we live life to its fullest, the rest of us, live life to its darkest... few of us survive, thrust into darkness we live, never to see light again, not because we hate the light, but because the light hates us, with few of us remaining, were forced to live on.... but some of us that remain, wish to die on, we live in this place, shadowed from light, in our dark shells we are safe, but sometimes someone dares to pierce us with their light, for moments we rejoice in the love of the warmth, but moments later the truth is revieled, always given a taste of the light, but never able to swallow, never able to keep it inside, we weep with the darkness, cast out by the light, we hate the light... for it pierces our night....
poem by Cameron Kalka
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