Blissful Hush at Squirrel Point Lighthouse
There is a blissful hush that entwines itself with the charm of Squirrel Point Lighthouse. Maybe it is the feeling of remoteness or the inexplicable aura that clings to a light and home once deemed essential in times past.
(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)
During the winter months, this quietude is exceeding. The cold air and blankets of white create not so much a sense of silence, but rather stillness. This perception converses with the heart amidst the layered depths of placidity that huddle around the historic light station.
No matter the reasons, the emotions evoked are real and deep-seated. Amidst the tranquility of Squirrel Point, I invariably enjoy lingering along the saturated riverbank where the ebb tide reveals more than meets the eye.
Here the lighthouse – though short in stature, seems to tower above me as I bask in the present joys afforded by the moment and place. The scene whispers that only the instant at hand matters, but my heart pays no heed.
Recalling the words of the great Robert Frost when he wrote, “time is circular,” I ponder how the months, seasons and tide always come back around. Might history too? This mystifying query tugs endlessly upon my thoughts and up against all accepted logic. Still I consider the possibility.
(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)
During my ramble, I observed the ebbing waters running for the sea. The tide and its swiftness of current seemed to boast of its ability to sweep clean the flats now bare – save sprinklings of sediments and seaweed artistically stranded in its wake. Such rapid motion would not permit time to rest for a single second, so surely the past must be long expunged, right?
It was only then – when the ebb tide was nearly spent and the countenance of the lighthouse could be admired within the bleary-mirrored waters of the Kennebec River that I realized an elusive secret was being revealed. History indeed does live and shine on the edge of the present. Proof was evident as the moment at the ready stood waiting to unfold into this very same space and time.
(Photo by Bob Trapani, Jr.)
As the reflection of Squirrel Point Lighthouse shimmered atop thin waters, I knew I was seeing into what was. A parade of magnificent scenes was marvelously retained within this eternal flow of to and fro.
Sights of bygone steamers laden with tourists were still plying by to ports of call, world-renowned wooden ships built up river in Bath still graced the river, cargoes of ice blocks remained unmelted amidst the epochs and mighty naval vessels still sought open waters for sea trials and service that have long since been memorialized in the history books.
And of course, there were the lighthouse keepers still standing watch upon the tides of time. For the divide between past and present cannot erase this time-honored roll call of names…keepers like Matthews, Seavey, Skolfield, Burns and Robicheau. Their dedication and service – and that of their families too, is still shining through from days gone by. I could not stay for all the stories to be told as the brine lapped against the glistening shore, but I walked away satisfied knowing that the past still lives – and always will.
