The Bell Rock
Lighthouse
I’ve been here since I can remember.
On this rocky outcrop above the ocean
To watch over shipping from January to December
And keep them safe with constant devotion.
I’m the Bell Rock Lighthouse, completed in 1810.
It is located at Inchcape, off the shore of Scotland.
And have saved countless ships from peril since then.
I have a tall serene white tower, and
At the base, a broad brown band
Constructed of Aberdeen granite rock
All are carefully laid by hand.
Legend says that originally, a bell was placed on the Rock.
To warn boats and ships of impending peril
As countless ships were wrecked, never to dock.
Till a disgruntled pirate took steps quite immoral
He was a Dutch Pirate and stole the bell, it’s said, from the Rock
The story immortalised in a poem by Robert Southey
He had a parrot perched on his shoulder and sported a wooden leg.
And legend said the parrot was rude, uncouth, and mouthy.
My lamp was first lit on the 1st of February in the year 1811.
I’m the longest-standing lighthouse in the world.
They were designed and built by Robert Stevenson with astute discretion.
And since then, they have survived all that nature has hurled.
The Rock and lighthouse are Scottish and world folklore.
Poems have been written, and songs have been composed.
Of mermaid’s and pirates’ magic and much more
And wild fancies that bards and songwriters supposed.
One said my father was the keeper of the Bell Rock Light
And he married a mermaid one night.
And from the union, there came three.
Coddling and a kipper, and the other were me.
There are countless myths and legends about me.
But I still guide and save ships to this day.
But regardless, I remain and will always be.
The only original lighthouse, regardless of what folks say.
©
David Rudder
2012
Thank you for reading this piece and my poetry.
If you enjoyed this and wished to read more, join Medium for only US $5 a month or US $50 a year to access all my stories and poems and thousands of other poets and writers and use this platform to publish and earn from your pieces, poetry, photos, and reports.
https://davidrudder.medium.com/membership
