LAUREL'S LIGHTHOUSE

A little more than a century ago, a town on the coast built a tall, sturdy lighthouse. The waters were treacherous along the coast--especially at night and in severe weather. This was their way of making sure ships at sea could navigate the waters safely by seeing the big light and hearing the foghorn. The lighthouse had living quarters on the lower level for the light keeper and his family if he had one.  The scenery was beautiful and there was a safe path to walk from the lighthouse to the town for supplies and see friends. The first light keeper was a young man who had just been married a year, and he and his wife fell in love with the town, the people, and the views from the lighthouse. They settled in, and his wife made a cozy home for them in the living quarters.  After living there for a while, his wife made a joyous announcement: they were going to have a baby! Everyone in town was incredibly happy for them and helped get things ready and to set up a nursery on the same level as the living quarters. The women of the town made sure the wife didn't overdo it, and the Dr. made house calls to check her progress. They decided on a name for a boy and a name for a girl--they didn't care which if it was healthy. Finally, the day came when the light keeper's wife went into labor. The Dr. came, and after several hours of agonizing labor, their little girl was born. They named her Laurel Elizabeth. There was a complication during the delivery, the baby was fine, but her mother lost a lot of blood.  She survived, but never really regained her strength. She passed away when Laurel was two years old. The light keeper raised her by himself with help.from the people in town. The ladies taught her things a young lady should know, manners, sewing, cleaning, and cooking, etc. She went to school in town and was liked by everyone. She loved to watch her father as he worked at the lighthouse. As she grew older, he would teach her how to do things that made it work. She became very proficient at it and would relieve her father so he could take breaks.  As the years passed and her father grew older, he became ill. Laurel divided her time between caring for her father and running the lighthouse. Her father passed away and she continued to operate the lighthouse.  As progress advanced, and they developed newer and better ways to alert ships, they decided they no longer needed the lighthouse and closed it.  But since it was the only home she'd ever known, they let Laurel live there until she passed.  To this day, some people say that when there is a storm at sea, you can see Laurel getting the big light ready to warn ships as she always did.