A Sleepy Bedtime Story: A Quiet Day in the Life of Seamus, The Lighthouse Keeper

hello my friend welcome to your sleep story my name is Steven Dalton I'm an Irish Storyteller and it's my great privilege to be the voice that you listen to as you go to sleep tonight in tonight's story We rejoin Sheamus the ligh housekeeper but don't worry if you haven't heard his story before each story Stands Tall on its own like a lighthouse Sheamus lives a simple life on a little Irish Island and looks after his lighthouse and tonight you're invited to observe the peaceful world of Sheamus this is another story that I didn't write out beforehand I simply closed my eyes and spoke the world of Sheamus into the microphone apart from when Sheamus reads his book you'll understand when you hear it okay let's do the relaxation session now which will take a few minutes before tonight's sleep story I'm going to count down from 10 to 1 and as I do allow yourself to let go more more and more 10 feel the support of the bed beneath you or the floor or whatever you may be lying on and beneath that beneath all of us feel the support that the Earth offers feel that constant and allow that feeling of support now to enable you to let go a little bit more there's no need to hold on right now nine feel into your body notice anything whether it be a little bit of pain or a tingling or attention and just see if you can let go a little bit more again maybe you're holding in your feet maybe your hands maybe your face your body has worked hard for you today it deserves to rest now so just allow More release eight you are safe allow my voice to be a calming anchor of safety tonight know that my voice will always bring you to Safe places allow it to be a friend that guides you to magical worlds and great adventures and stories beyond your [Music] imagination seven the day is done whatever has been has been whatever will be will be but right now in this moment just see if you can let let go of any thoughts that keep arriving don't fight them they are a part of Being Human just see them for what they are as they arrive and let them go watch them float away like clouds passing in front of your eyes on a starry night six peace l lives inside of you it's always there it's in all of us it's just waiting to be seen waiting to be heard waiting to be felt and that peace can be felt by you tonight breathe in now and breathe out and see if that peace is there five you deserve rest you deserve sleep we all do know that fact know deep inside yourself that you are deserving of this rest in fact you are better for it not just for yourself but for those around you sleep is your friend it is healing and it is welcoming you tonight for allow yourself to feel a little gratitude now for this moment for the ability to listen to this sleep story to indulge in this healing time three begin to engage with your imagination now begin to see a beautiful lighthouse Standing Tall on a little rocky Irish Island surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean begin to hear the sounds to smell the smell of the fresh Sea Air and to see a kindly looking man the Lighthouse Keeper two feel into your body one more time now just letting go of any tension still there one completely ly letting go now as I tell you tonight's sleep story Sheamus stands at the foot of the lighthouse after just coming up from the beach it's late morning now and as he looks at the door to the light house he realizes that it could really do with being painted he decides that now is as good a time as Annie and he goes to the little shed next to where the chickens live and he retrieves the paint oh did I I mention that Sheamus has a dog yes a lovely old Irish red setter that goes by the name of era yes the gelic for Ireland Shamus loves his dark era and era loves Sheamus era has the perfect life for a dog really living by the ocean free as a bird and all the attention he could want from his beloved Master anyway I digress Sheamus takes the paint from the shed and the brushes which he had made sure to wash the last time he painted the door which must have been last year or was it the year before he opens the paint and spreads some sheets around the grass then he begins the process of taking the old paint off and cleaning the door [Music] down he loves this kind of work he doesn't take it for granted that he's out in the Beautiful Ocean Air on this tiny Irish island in the late spring and he has everything he needs and he has peace in his soul and he is able to settle into his work with great ease and great dedication once the door is clean of old paint Sheamus begins the process of painting it fresh he rhythmically applies the deep blue color he has done this many times before and it's always the same color of course the lighthouse itself needs painting too but that's normally done by more than just Sheamus that's a big undertaking as he paints he breathes in and out enjoying the feeling of just being the wind blows through his long gray hair and the lines around the sides of his eyes crease as he smiles to himself in a kind of deep satisfaction a deep contentment with the moment he is in is where wear ing his usual blue overalls he has five of these he has had them for many years and it's pretty much all he ever wears but he enjoys this me he never has to think about what he's going to wear or how he's going to look not that he doesn't care about his appearance he takes great pride in himself in fact but he enjoys the fact that he doesn't always have to keep up a appearances especially given that this is the year 1911 and he lives in a time when everyone was very conscious of how they looked to others and gentlemen had to dress in a very particular way way and so did ladies of course even little children but Sheamus lives this simple life far away from society and the stuffiness that can sometimes accompany it after he finishes the first coat he decides to take a little break and he goes into the kitchen he likes to have a second coffee a little later in the morning and so he relights the fire puts some more water in the kettle and just sits and waits for it to boil the window in the kitchen is open and the gulls are flying around above it's like they know Sheamus's rhythms they know when it's coming close to Sheamus's lunchtime and Sheamus is sometimes kind to them and throw them a little bread he looks out through the window out to the wild Atlantic Ocean next stop America he thinks to himself ARA walks into the kitchen he knows he's not really allowed in here but Shamus can't help himself he loves this dog so much and who wants a dog that's like a robot anyway he often thinks to himself era has personality and that's why Sheamus loves him the water finishes boiling and Sheamus puts some coffee into the little pot and mixes it with the boiling water and puts it back onto the Heat for another little while while he waits for the coffee to brew he can smell both the coffee and the Salty Sea Air and he can feel the warmth of the sun on his face as it gently moves moves around and starts to shine through the window only gently mind you it's not too warm just perfect as it often can be on an Irish island in the springtime he decides to journal a little more while he's sitting here he finds it very cathartic he finds it very useful he wonders if one day someone will read all of this he supposes they will he doesn't mind I'll be long gone he thinks to himself and maybe they'll enjoy my story 28th of May 1911 continued it was only after I stopped being a sailor that I really seriously started looking into becoming a Lighthouse Keeper I remember visiting gway that great City on the west coast of Ireland and I met a friend for a pint in the pub it was a late night I remember and we were deep in conversation we were sitting by a little fire and it was raining outside for some reason I think it was January anyway that's not the point I remember him saying to me what do you want to do now that you're not a sailor I suppose you'll settle down and meet someone have kids no I said almost immediately and in that moment there was something very telling about my response I kind of recognized that for me the Family Life wasn't it I wanted to live a life of Solitude I actually said it to my friend in that moment and he laughed at me almost as if there was something wrong with that and so I made my case who says I have to have a family I said I love people I love my friends but I'm happy on my own and I love the ocean and it was the very next morning in fact that I went down towards gway Bay and I found someone who worked in the Ducks and I asked them how do you get into the lighthouse keeping man sure it wasn't long before I was putting on the [Music] uniform and soon I was Manning my first Lighthouse I was part of a team back then there were a few few of us I would work shifts sometimes I would sleep sometimes I would stay up all night I remember those days I would sit with the light make sure sure it was going throughout lot of time to think I'll tell you deep in the night when you get bored of reading your book and when you have no one to talk to a person learns a bit about themselves but I loved it and of course I stayed at it sure hav't I here now anyway to be continued the coffee is ready and Sheamus pours it into a little bowl and goes outside to sit on his favorite log he looks up to the lighthouse as he sips his coffee such a beautiful thing he thinks this Beacon that saves lives this proof that humans care for each other he closes his eyes now and take some deep breaths enjoying everything about this moment this is his moment he has nothing to distract him he has nowhere to be he has nowhere to go he is the master of his own existence now he decides to continue painting the door he goes back and rhythmically applies the next coat he really enjoys this process and while he's painting he thinks about how his life is kind of like a monk's life he grows his own vegetables he has his own chickens he lives far away from most of society he meditates he's very connected to himself and to the world around him there's something in that he thinks to himself he sigh out a contented sigh as he finishes painting the door after all of this activity he decides that now is a good time to have a little lie down in his little room on his little bed and read his book A book that he has read many times but a book that he loves deeply Treasure Island by Robert Louie Stevenson he opens the book on the chapter he was last reading and begins from the start again chapter 10 the voyage all that night we were in a great bustle getting things stowed in their place and boatfuls of the Squire's friends Mr blandly and the like coming off to wish him a good voyage and a safe return we never had a night at the Admiral benbo when I had half the work and I was dog tired when a little before Dawn the boat Swain sounded his pipe and the crew began to man the cap standand bars I might have been twice as weary yet I would not have left the deck all was so new and interesting to me the brief [Music] commands the shrill note of the Whistle the men bustling to their places in the glimmer of the ship's lanterns now barbecue tip us a stay cried One Voice the old one cried another iy I mates said Long John who was standing by with his crutch under his arm and at once broke out in the air and words I knew so well 15 men on the Dead Man's chest and then the whole crew bore chorus yo ho hoe and a bottle of rum and at the third hoe drove the bars before them with a will even at that exciting moment it carried me back to the old Admiral benbo in a second and I seemed to hear the voice of the captain piping in the chorus but soon the anchor was short up soon it was hanging dripping at the boughs soon the sails began to draw and the land and ship shipping to flit by on either side and before I could lie down to snatch an hour of Slumber the Hispanola had begun her Voyage to the aisle of treasure I am not going to relate that Voyage in detail it was fairly prosperous the ship proved to be a good ship the crew were capable seamen and the captain thoroughly understood his business but before we came to the length of Treasure Island two or three things had happened which require to be known at this point Sheamus's eyes grow heavy and he starts to fall into a deep rest and little catnap if you will era comes in and lies on the ground next to his bed and he also feels a little sleepy the two companions rest for quite some time both luxuriating in the restorative rest that is being offered to them free of cares free of worries and for now free of [Music] obligations some time passes and eventually Sheamus gently comes back and realizes that it is getting late late enough to start thinking about the evening routine he goes outside and takes a deep in breath of that Fresh Ocean Air he sees that the light is beginning to fade and the Sun is beginning to say goodby to the day he knows what he needs to do for he has done it thousands upon thousands of times he goes back inside and Begins the climb up to the top of the lighthouse step by step era decides to follow him she enjoys the view from the top and as Sheamus climbs the steps he wonders for how many more years he will do this he feels young he feels able and it's not like there are people queuing up to replace him each step he climbs he feels a little bit more grateful for the life that he has had for the friends and the an animals for his health for his family his parents and his sister and for being blessed with a home on this beautiful island far away from civilization eventually he reaches the lamp room and the Sun is continuing its descent there are many places upon this planet to watch a sunset but it must be said Sheamus believes that the best Sunset is to be seen from a top his lighthouse on the western side of the little island that he has lived on for all these days decades he sits for a moment with era by his side the two old friends in quiet agreement that this is a moment to be savored a moment of shared friendship a moment that will only ever happen once yes there have been sunsets before and yes there will be sunsets again but this Sunset is one of a kind the ligh housekeeper thanks to himself for for for for for for for for for e for for for for for for for for for for for for for for e for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for for e for for e for for

Channel: Stephen Dalton Sleep Stories

Views: 21,598

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Id: 62HissFTG9E

Length: 89min 59sec (5399 seconds)

Published: Wed Jun 12 2024