If you're anywhere near Baton Rouge, Louisiana on November 2, 2024, come see me! I'll be on an author's panel discussing Women and War: Inspirational Fiction, from 9:00- 9:45 in the Louisiana State Capitol, Room 2. Then I'll be signing books in the Book Tent from 10:00-10:45. See you there! https://louisianabookfestival.org/featured-authors-panelists/featured-participant-lineup/marilyn-turk/ Marilyn's picture, 2022 [...]
Friends Everyday I get new friend requests on Facebook and through my email It’s great to have so many people who want to be my friend. However, these aren’t real people. They are bots or scammers phishing for information from me. They post comments on my posts or on posts I’ve responded [...]
Merry Christmas! May your heart be filled with the love and joy of the one true light. I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. John 8:12 "Take Out Window" by Charles Wysocki.
Pencarrow Lighthouse, New Zealand Mary Jane Bennett was New Zealand’s only female lighthouse keeper and was the head keeper of the country’s first permanent lighthouse. However, for many years, her contribution went unnoticed. Mary was the daughter of an English squire, where she lived a comfortable life of prestige. But when George Bennett [...]
Of course, they do! In fact, reading is one of the requirements for the job. So today, I’m taking a reader survey, since I’m also a reader and I’m interested in what reading habits you have. Do you have a favorite place to read? (Inside, Outside, favorite chair, bed?) Do you have a favorite time [...]
“There I was, standing in a field of garbage,” the visiting missionary said. He was sharing a story about his search for a place to have an off-campus residence for some students in Africa whose college did not provide housing. The missionary and his wife wanted to fill a need for female students to have [...]
Spectacle Reef, photo courtesy lighthousefriends.com. Located in Lake Huron, Spectacle Reef is subject to the conditions of the Great Lake. From December through March, the lake is covered with ice. The lighthouse keepers played roulette trying to guess when it was time to go back to the mainland, since shipping stopped during that [...]
Call me a rebel. Or a hypocrite. Or even a fake. But the truth is, I don’t always love writing. What, you say? Aren’t writers supposed to love writing? Now I know some do, but I doubt even those who do love it don’t love it all the time. Some authors even say they can’t [...]
Montauk Point Lighthouse, photo courtesy lighthousefriends.com. If you visit Montauk Point Lighthouse on the end of Long Island, New York, you’ll find it hard to believe the lighthouse was almost abandoned, either to be destroyed or allowed to fall into the sea by the encroaching waves. But that is exactly what almost happened. [...]
West Quoddy Head Lighthouse, Maine, photo by Laura Timberman Today's post was written by Special Guest Timothy Harrison, Editor of Lighthouse Digest For almost all of modern history the men and women who have served in our nation’s military forces have been honored with veteran’s markers at their grave sites at community cemeteries across [...]
What’s Good about being a Ghost? (ghostwriter) There are times in my writing career when I’m asked to ghostwrite a story, that is, write someone else’s story, where they get the byline and I don’t. As a writer who likes to take advantage of any opportunity I can, I usually accept the assignment. Some of [...]
"The people walking in darkness have seen a great light." Isaiah 9:2 The light of the world has come! Merry Christmas!
A Present for the Sentinel by Charles Wysocki How did the lighthouse keepers get their Christmas packages delivered? Most were sent by ship because there were often no roads to the lighthouses, or if there were, they might be impassable during part of the year. Our lighthouse keeper in this picture by [...]
Esopus Lighthouse, NY, by Jeff Severson I'm thankful for the fabulous colors of fall. What an amazing artist our Creator is! Have a blessed thanksgiving! Thank you to Jeff Severson who allowed me to use his gorgeous fall picture of Esopus Lighthouse, New York. You can find more of his beautiful photography [...]
Gay Head Light by Charles Wysocki "Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; His love endures forever." Psalm 107:1
Ponce de Leon Inlet Lighthouse. Photo by Chuck Turk Raise your hand if you want to go to Mosquito Inlet! If you’ve had any experience with those pesky insects, you might think twice. Mosquito Inlet was the exit point for two rivers in Florida – the Halifax River and the Hillsborough [...]
Les Casquets Lighthouse, photo by Juan Gutierrez Andres, courtesy of Wikipedia Commons. One of the blessings of writing about lighthouses is meeting other people who love lighthouses, especially those who work with them. Since there are few lighthouses that still employ keepers, it is quite a pleasure to meet a [...]
This post was originally published on Sept. 1, 2012. I think it is a good time to republish it. St. Mark's Lighthouse, Florida Capt. John Hungerford stood on the gallery of the St. Marks Lighthouse scanning the horizon. There was a storm brewing out there over the Gulf of Mexico. The sky [...]
Two Bush Island Light, Maine, old postcard courtesy lighthousefriends.com March, 1902 “Woof! Woof!” What was that dog yapping about now? Keeper Altiverd Norton at Two Bush Island Lighthouse off the coast of Maine woke to the sound of his dog Smut’s bark. The dog was obviously excited about something. Was it a [...]
Marquette Harbor Light, photo by Chuck Turk Anna wasn’t cut out for this. Nothing in her young life had prepared her to be a lighthouse keeper’s wife. Born in Sweden, she had come to the United States as a teenager and married Robert Carlson, newly appointed assistant keeper at Outer Island Light in [...]
Kraig Anderson at Point Arena Lighthouse, CA Kraig Anderson was bitten by the lighthouse bug during a business trip to the Outer Banks, North Carolina, where he saw Bodie Island Lighthouse and Cape Hatteras Lighthouse for the first time. The desire to see more lighthouses triggered a quest that led him to spend [...]
Baily Lighthouse, Ireland In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, this blog is dedicated to Irish lighthouses and the guiding light they have provided for over 300 years. Baily Lighthouse shines its light out twenty-six miles to sea from its position on cliffs which extend into Dublin Bay. It is one of Ireland's [...]
I know they’re waiting for me in there. Even when I forget, as soon as I walk into my office, there they are, the whole cast and crew, hanging around until I return to my desk each day. There’s pretty Cora, pensively sitting at her desk, undoubtedly thinking of the next hat she’ll create, and [...]
Ailsa Craig Lighthouse, Photo by Ian Cowe One of the first lessons a new lighthouse keeper in Scotland learned was the importance of conversation. The Commissioners of the Northern Lights operated the 212 lighthouses in the country with three-man crews who rotated every six weeks, unless weather intervened. In addition, many relief keepers [...]
Richard Etheridge learned about the sea while growing up on the Outer Banks - how to fish, how to pilot boats, and how to search the beach for debris from wrecked ships. From his master, he learned how to read and write. When Union troops took control of the Outer Banks in the Civil War [...]