Lighthouses

On Tuesday, a friend and I drove up to Port Townsend, about an hour from my house, to see a lighthouse, or maybe two.  It was great fun.  We went to Fort Flagler first--the lighthouse does not really exist as such--there's a big block of cement with a light on it.  But as far as I know it's functional.  The lighthouse at Fort Worden, however, is still there--still lighting the way for ships.  At the very end of a point, it is protected by a short rock wall.  In good weather like we had, you can walk all the way down to the point and up over a small rise of rocks to walk to the lighthouse.  It's not open to visitors expect on certain days, but we got pretty close.  It was shining in the sun.  So pretty.  And so symbolic.  Lighthouses just have a mythical quality to them.  They stand for hope--that light shining in the dark that we all so desperately seek when we're alone.  At our darkest moments, we pray that the light will find us and guide us home.  It's not really God, but I guess it could be.  It's what God stands for, I think--Love, Light, and Faith.  One of my favorite musicians, Susan Cowsill, just released a CD entitled Lighthouse--the title song expresses these ideas beautifully--she has put into words and music what so many of us have felt in those dark times.  The lighthouse will always be a symbolic beacon of light in the world.