The Lamplighter
by Bill Kirton
Genre: Drama
Swearwords: None.
Description: How war changed young women's lives.
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Dusk.
She leaned on her window sill, waiting for the lamplighter’s nightly visit. Already, she could hear his whistle as his boots tapped along the street towards her. Slow steps, the steps of an old man. Most of the younger ones had gone and those who were still alive were sitting in their trenches, probably hoping the night would stay dark, dreading the flares and flashes of the guns. She’d only heard stories and the truths they told were unimaginable.
As he arrived beneath her window, the lamplighter gave her his usual smile and wave and reached his long pole up to the fragile glass cage that protected the delicate mantle. With slow, gentle care he eased it up into the chamber, moving it softly back and forth, seeking the tap. The tip of his pole caught it, turned on the flow and held it close to the mantle until the pop and slow illumination of the gas told him all was well. He withdrew the pole and the warm yellow light spilled down to flow in a circle around the base of the lamppost.
The man turned and walked on towards the next lamp, fifty yards down the street. She watched him until he became part of the shadows, leaving only his whistle hanging in the air. She looked at the patterns the lamp threw on the wall of her house, sensed the life which the light had brought to the cobbles and bricks around it.
There was only her and the low hiss and flicker of the gas. But no light crept into the folds of darkness within her. The night was empty. It needed more of this radiance, more light everywhere.
But the young lamplighters had all gone.
Swearwords: None.
Description: How war changed young women's lives.
_____________________________________________________________________
Dusk.
She leaned on her window sill, waiting for the lamplighter’s nightly visit. Already, she could hear his whistle as his boots tapped along the street towards her. Slow steps, the steps of an old man. Most of the younger ones had gone and those who were still alive were sitting in their trenches, probably hoping the night would stay dark, dreading the flares and flashes of the guns. She’d only heard stories and the truths they told were unimaginable.
As he arrived beneath her window, the lamplighter gave her his usual smile and wave and reached his long pole up to the fragile glass cage that protected the delicate mantle. With slow, gentle care he eased it up into the chamber, moving it softly back and forth, seeking the tap. The tip of his pole caught it, turned on the flow and held it close to the mantle until the pop and slow illumination of the gas told him all was well. He withdrew the pole and the warm yellow light spilled down to flow in a circle around the base of the lamppost.
The man turned and walked on towards the next lamp, fifty yards down the street. She watched him until he became part of the shadows, leaving only his whistle hanging in the air. She looked at the patterns the lamp threw on the wall of her house, sensed the life which the light had brought to the cobbles and bricks around it.
There was only her and the low hiss and flicker of the gas. But no light crept into the folds of darkness within her. The night was empty. It needed more of this radiance, more light everywhere.
But the young lamplighters had all gone.
About the Author
Bill Bill Kirton was born in Plymouth, but has lived in Aberdeen for most of his life. He’s been a university lecturer, presented TV programmes, written and performed songs and sketches at the Edinburgh Festival, and had radio plays broadcast by the BBC. He’s written four books in Pearson’s ‘Brilliant’ series and his crime novels, Material Evidence, Rough Justice, The Darkness, Shadow Selves and the historical novel The Figurehead, set in Aberdeen in 1840, have been published in the UK and USA. His other novel, The Sparrow Conundrum, is a crime spoof set in Aberdeen and Inverness. His short stories have appeared in several anthologies and Love Hurts was chosen for the Mammoth Book of Best British Crime 2010.
His website and blog can be found at http://www.bill-kirton.co.uk.
His website and blog can be found at http://www.bill-kirton.co.uk.