The Lighthouse

“Look Sara, it’s the ocean!”
“What does it look like?” wondered a small curious voice.
“It’s prettier than anything I’ve ever seen!” exclaimed the other voice.
“Whoa…” the little girl spoke with a wondrous expression.
“It’s really something isn’t it?” asked another voice. “I grew up here by the sea, in the same place we’re headed right now.”
“You really got to live here dad?” wondered the girls.
“Yes, and you two are lucky enough to live in the very same house.”
After driving, the trio arrived at an old sea cottage. Around them blew a salty wind, which whisked the grass beneath their feet. In the distance was an old lighthouse, surrounded by a rocky cove. An ocean mist refreshed the three as they watched white-caps crash upon a jagged rock shore.
“It’s just like I remember!” said the father as he reminisced.
“Whoa…” the two girls repeated as they became mesmerized by the swaying of ocean waves.
“Well, what do you think?” the father asked.
“It’s perfect!” the elder sister judged after a moment of silence.
“Perfect eh? Do you agree with Liz, Sara?” the father asked his youngest daughter.
“Yeah!” Sara replied. “It’s just right!”
“Can we go see the lighthouse dad? Please?!” begged the two sisters.
“And leave your poor old dad to unpack all by himself?” complained their father.
“Okay…” the girls moaned.
“Tell you what, I’ll let you go and check out the house while I unpack the car. But don’t go running off okay?” he told the girls.
“Okay! Thanks dad!” yelled the two as they ran towards the cottage.
As the two sisters slid open the front door of the cottage, dust gathered around their feet.
“Wow, this place is old!” exclaimed Sara.
“Yep, this cottage has been here for many decades.” explained the father as he walked past them into the old, dusty cottage. “It’s a little dirtier than I had thought.”
“It’s not that bad,” reasoned Liz “We could get this cleaned in no time! And then we’ll go check out the lighthouse!”
“Yeah! Can we dad?!” Sara questioned.
“I don’t know about the lighthouse.” The father explained in a worried tone. “You see, that lighthouse is even older than I am. When I grew up here, my grandfather never allowed me to go near it, and warned me that it wasn’t safe .For the time being, don’t go near it. I don’t want either of you getting into trouble. Got it?”
“Okay…” Sara said sadly.
“We get it.” added Liz.
“Well, in the mean time, let’s get this place cleaned!” exclaimed the father.
“Yeah! Let’s do it!” the sisters said excitedly.
Hours past as quickly as they came, and when cleaning was finished, the sun began to set. As they began preparing dinner, the phone started ringing.
“Hello?” the father answered. “Really? That’s no good. Oh? Really? I can’t thank you enough! I’ll be there soon. Bye.”
“Who was that?” questioned the sisters.
“That was our neighbour who lives a mile back. Apparently we lost some luggage on the way here. He picked it up for us, so I’m going to go and get it. Can I count on you two to watch the house?” wondered the dad.
“Of course! We’re not children dad!” said Liz.
“Yeah, we’re mature!” giggled Sara.
“Okay then girls, I’ll be back in about an hour.” their father told them as he got into the car.
“Bye!” the sisters exclaimed as the father waved and pulled away. Night began to envelop day as the sky darkened.
“Hey Sara, come check this out!” exclaimed Liz as she gazed into the star encrusted sky.
“It’s so pretty…” Sara mumbled. “Hey, the lighthouse is on!” she yelled.
“It is!” Liz noticed.
Sara immediately ran towards the luminescent glow. Liz didn’t notice Sara go until the sound of crashing waves on the rocky shore brought her attention away from the alluring light.
“Wait! We aren’t supposed to go to the lighthouse!” Liz yelled. Unfortunately, Sara could not hear her sister over the ocean waves. Liz thought about running after her sister, but she did not want to get in trouble for going to the lighthouse.
“I know! I’ll get dad, he’ll know what to do!” Liz thought. As she looked down the road, she saw her father’s vehicle move out of sight. She yelled at the top of her lungs, but her father was gone, and now so was Sara. “What am I going to do?” Liz fell to the ground, and delved into her thoughts. “I’ve got to find Sara.” She concluded “I can’t just let her go. I was responsible for her, and if anything happens, it will be entirely my fault.” Liz stood up, and wiped her face. “I’ve got to find her, before dad gets back.” She stated with determination. Liz turned towards the lighthouse, and without wasting any time, started to run. The lighthouse was much farther away than she had thought. As she came towards it, she noticed something.
“Sara’s hat!” Liz exclaimed. The pink straw hat was stuck on a jagged rock near the bottom of the lighthouse cliff. Many thoughts ran through Liz’s head, but were interrupted by a scream. It had come from the lighthouse. As she burst through the door and ran up the stairs, she was terrified at what she might find, but at the same time relieved. She knew that her sister was up there. As she climbed a final step, Liz found Sara, bundled into a ball, crying.
“Sara!” exclaimed Liz.
“Sis!” cried Sara as she ran towards her sister and grasped her clothes firmly. “I’m scared! It’s really high, and I lost my hat!”
Liz comforted her sister and whispered to her “Its okay, I’m here. Let’s go back to the house now okay? We don’t want to get in trouble.”
“Okay…” Sara sniffled. The sisters took their time making their way back to the house. The whole time, Sara had clung to her sister’s back, too weary to walk. When they arrived at home, their father was waiting.
“Where were you two?” their father questioned.
“I’m sorry dad!” Liz spoke as she began to cry. “It’s my fault, I wasn’t watching Sara, and she wandered into the lighthouse!”
“Wait!” exclaimed Sara as she climbed down from her sister’s back.
“What is it Sara?” asked the dad.
“It’s my fault! I ran off when I shouldn’t have! Don’t get mad at Liz, because if it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be here. So if you’re going to punish anyone… punish me!” Sara exclaimed.
“Well. You two went to the lighthouse when I told you not to, and put yourself at risk. But, you were honest with me, so neither of you are in trouble.” said the father after silence.
“You aren’t mad?” the two sisters said with confused expressions.
“I’m disappointed that you disobeyed me, but you learned something, and you took good care of each other. I’m proud.” The father explained. “Now who’s hungry?”
“Yeah!!!” the sister’s exclaimed. As they walked into the cottage, the sisters took one more look at the lighthouse. As they turned to look at each other, they smiled and laughed, then went inside to enjoy the first meal in their new home.