I trim the wick at quarter past
The glass holds fast against the blast
A pale wing lands on iron rail
It holds its ground through wind and gale
This moth and me we know the job
Keep the light through storm and fog
No wings to carry us to shore
Just steady beams for evermore
The harbor buoys ring slow and low
The moth don't ask why winds must blow
Fog climbs the cables thick and white
The beam cuts through the heavy night
This moth and me we know the job
Keep the light through storm and fog
No wings to carry us to shore
Just steady beams for evermore
Salt crust builds on lantern glass
The moth returns when storms don't pass
I wipe it clear with calloused thumb
Steady as the turning drum
Fifty years I've watched the bay
This fragile thing has more to say
Ships come in and ships go out
None kept watch like this small scout
Morning paints the water gold
My shift ends as the day unfolds
The moth lifts off on warming air
I stay right here to tend the flare
This moth and me we know the job
Keep the light through storm and fog
No wings to carry us to shore
Just steady beams for evermore
The logbook shows the same old lines
The moth don't show in written signs
Wind direction, visibility
Dawn breaks clean across the sea
This moth and me we know the job
Keep the light through storm and fog
No wings to carry us to shore
Just steady beams for evermore
We hold the dark at bay alone
Two keepers on this pier of stone
Salt air takes the lamp glass clean
The beam cuts white the beam cuts white
