36 Watts

Lighthouses, it seems, take thirty-six watt bulbs
A third of those that shine above me, used
To keep rocks unencrusted by skeletons
Hulls draped like whalebone fossils over stone

How many men does it take to change them?
No joke when so far from shore, remote
And guarded even from repair crews’ boats
By frothing water sheathing points beneath

No men wait within the place these days, no
Bearded keeper, lonely, watching out for
Shadows of things lit too near the rocks
No peaceful stay within this man made spur

Nothing but that single thirty-six watt bulb.

Stuart Sharp,
Beverley.

First submission in!

Stuart Sharp from Beverley is the first ever contributor to this new incarnation of Ancient Heart Magazine. Check out the next post for his poem 36 Watts. Great stuff and thank you Stuart!