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The photo inspiration for this week’s writing and poetry #WDYS prompt #214, November 27, 2023, shows a lighthouse. Sadje asks us to write a poem inspired by the image below of a lighthouse. The light on its top is shining in the pre-dawn civil twilight…

Inspired by this photo prompt, I wrote my poem The Storm That Raged the Night Before.

The Storm That Raged the Night Before

The storm that raged the night before 
‘Twere as though the Gods were hard at war. 
With vehement strength and mighty force 
Engulfing everything in its course, 
Threatening ships and boats at sea, 
Raging rampant fierce and angry!
Ill humour with blackened thundery cloud 
Roaring and severely deafening loud. 
The rolling slamming monstrous waves 
Tossing and swamping boats like paper slaves. 
Winds from the east and south 
Gasping open Neptune’s mouth. 

The lighthouse beacon flashes candela bright 
With dots and dashes its character light 
The lighthouse beam strobes far and wide, 
in continual rotation,
Location ID to ships and the terrified
In the the blackest stormy ocean.
Warning signals that will save
Tens of thousands from their grave.

At last, the argument was over, 
In the magic time of twilight 
The mountainous waves were done, 
The lighthouse stands guard upon the rocks, 
Waiting for the sun. 
Ships safe in harbour, ports and docks 
Along the white cliffed shore of Dover.

Storm’s vengeance stopped.
The anchor dropped. 
All hands on deck, safe to shore,
Everyone accounted for.
The sea is gentle now and laps upon the sands.



—Lesley Scoble, November, 2023

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NOTES

The Lighthouse Beacon
Modern lighthouse beacons vary in power. They can be between 10,000 candelas to about 1 million candelas. (The candela is the unit used to measure the amount of light from a source radiating in a particular direction.) 

One candela is equivalent to about one two-hundredth of the brightness of a 50-watt light bulb.

Its Character Light
Each lighthouse emits its own unique series of flashes known as its characteristic. 

To identify which lighthouse it is, the ship’s captain times the intervals between flashes, identifying them from a Lights List which lighthouse they are seeing.

There are several types of light sequences. The one I chose for my poem is the Morse Code which delivers light in a series of dots and dashes.

Counting the dots
One night, my job on a yacht was to look out for Weymouth harbour. In pitch black, I counted the dots and dashes to ensure we saw the right lighthouse. Then sailing into the pretty and welcoming Weymouth harbour was a dream.
~
Sailing at night by the stars
I loved sailing at night following the North Star. All I had to do was keep the star close to the left of the mast and we were going in the right direction.
~

ACKNOWLEDGING 
My thanks to Sadje, #Whatdoyousee for the inspirational photo prompt.

Image Credit
12019 @ Pixabay

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Lesley lives in the City of London Square Mile. An artist, actor and sculptor (her first ceramic sculpture won the V&A inspired by… Award). Scenic artist & book illustrator, playwright, (her musical play, Rapscallion performed in inner city schools and theatre school); TV dancer; Animator and illustrator for TV production. Set up Pinecone Studios Ltd and IIMSI Ltd drama and filmmaking workshops in London – producing award-winning films made by children.