There once was a giant, deep, dark ocean, that spun from one corner of the world to another. Most of the ocean was empty. No island, no continents from the one shore to the other. Except for a single rock, sticking its body out of the water. The rock was lonely because it did not have anyone else to talk to. No other rocks, not a stone, a pebble or even a grain of sand. Sometimes it could spot ships on the horizon, but they seemed to be wary of the rock, and never came close enough for him to tell them to take him with them. The rock did not think this would ever change.
One day, out of the blue, a long structure floated towards the rock. A long cylindrical shape, with red and white stripes painted on it, and a head made out of metal. The rock called out: “Careful! I am here! You’ll hit your head!”
The structure answered: “Dear rock, I have been floating since I fell off a cliff! Would you mind if I rested on top of you?”
If the rock could blush, he’d be red by now: “I would be delighted! I never had anyone visit me, much less to rest on top of me!”
The structure jumped out of the water and hopped on top of the rock, firmly planting itself on the highest spot.
The structure said: “This place is perfect! It is like it was made for me.”
The rock answered: “It is not a problem. I have never seen anything like you, but I must admit, I have not seen much at all.”
The structure laughed: “I can imagine. I have also not seen anything since I have been floating in this dreadful ocean. They call me a lighthouse.”
The rock asked: “A light house? I have no idea what a house is, but light, you are not!”
The lighthouse laughed: “No rock. I am not a light house. I am a house that shines light upon the ocean, to help boats stay away from where I am standing!”
The rock was astonished: “Your purpose is to keep things away from you? Maybe I am a lighthouse too!”
The lighthouse was amused: “Not quite rock. You are just far away from the path the boats travel, so no one ever has any reason to visit you. Where I used to stand, there are a lot of your cousins, under the water and sticking out of it. And when the night comes, I warn the boats to stay away from them.”
The rock was appalled: “You tell the boats to stay away from the other rocks? Why would you do that?!”
The lighthouse remained calm: “Because some things are just not supposed to meet, rock. If a boat touches a rock, the boat gets hurt. And neither your cousins nor the boats want that.”
The rock calmed: “I suppose so. I would not want to harm anyone.”
They both stayed quiet for a while. The rock contemplating that maybe it was a good thing he never had any visitors, and the lighthouse questioning if all rocks were so lonely as this one, and if it was its fault.
When the night arrived and it went dark, the lighthouse woke up, and turned on its lights, flashing them all around the ocean surrounding the rock.
The rock said: “Lighthouse.”
The lighthouse asked: “What is it rock?”
The rock responded: “Is this what you do every night?”
The lighthouse confirmed: “Yes rock. This is how I show the boats that there are rocks in the dark.”
The rock said thoughtful: “It is not so bad then. These rocks get so see your beautiful light every night.”
The light touching the ocean flickered for a moment.
Then the lighthouse said: “Thank you rock. No one ever has called my light beautiful.”
The went quiet for some time again.
The lighthouse spoke up first this time: “Rock. Are you there?”
The rock laughed: “I am here lighthouse. Now and forever.”
The lighthouse said: “Sitting on top of you, in the middle of the ocean. My light touches water all around, not wasting half of it on the land, where there are rocks too, but no boats to warn!”
The rock thought for a moment: “Maybe there are things that should not meet because something bad will happen. And maybe there are things that should meet, because together the make each other better.”
The lighthouse asked: “Like a rock and a lighthouse?”
The rock said: “Like a rock and a lighthouse.”
- Cass