Lighthouse: A poem by Nisha Tandon

The dilapidated lighthouse towers over the ruthless sea
Many momentous stories it often narrates
Having stood witness to adrift ships on stormy nights
It has weathered splashing winds and blasphemous waves

A wrecked flight of stairs unraveled unknown space
Mysterious and haunted, a million ghost tales
Stones smeared with brine aligned, dark and cold
And through its tilted window streamed in fragmented sun rays

The seagulls encircle above with fluttering wings
Trapped in the wind’s discord and the violent downpours
Their pale feathers shine, contrasting the dark grey skies
And their melancholic cries are drenched in unutterable pathos

Every night conscientiously the lighthouse comes alive
As it throws a wide beam across the choppy waters
It dances restlessly to the tunes of the whistling winds
And playful waves join in the  harmonious chorus

The solitary lighthouse stands tall in the tempestuous sea
A shining star starkly arising from that curious abyss 
A beacon of hope to lure stranded souls ashore

As in bringing them home it fulfills the era long promise