There was a little town along the shores of a beach. The name of the town was called Cliffs View. It was called this because of the very large, high cliffs that were next to the village, overlooking the sea. People would come from all over just to climb the cliffs and look down into the ocean water.
Many people lived in the town of Cliffs View, and many of them were very friendly. The townspeople liked to talk and laugh and hold dances in the middle of the village. They all worked together to make sure the town had everything it needed. Everyone worked and everyone had plenty to eat, and nice clothes to wear.
There were several shops that were in the village. There was a bakery where Mr. Dilly made bread and cakes for special occasions. There was a clothing shop where Mrs. Miller and her daughters made clothes for the people of the town. It was very nice for the little town to have all of these shops.
There was also the local inn called the Lighthouse Inn, owned by Mr. and Mrs. Waverly. It was at the end of the small town, the very last building before the cliffs. The Lighthouse Inn was in the little town so people could come and visit the people of the town. It was called the Lighthouse Inn because way up on the cliffs was a lighthouse. The only person that lived in the lighthouse was an old man by the name of Mr. Tewdy.
He was not a very friendly man, not at all like the townspeople. He did not come to the dances in the middle of the villages, and he did not talk to very many people. He certainly did not laugh. He had a big nose that was always red like an apple, and he had a very hairy face. He never smiled at anyone. Mr. Tewdy would come to the village every week to load up on his supplies in the lighthouse, but that is the only time the townspeople saw him.
Mr. Tewdy was in charge of making sure that when there was a storm, the big pit in the lighthouse had a huge fire in it so the ships that were out at sea could come in to shore by the light of the big fire. Mr. Tewdy would chop firewood every week to make sure he had enough when there was a storm. He piled it up on the side of the lighthouse so he could just carry the wood up to the big fire pit the hung high in the lighthouse.
He was very good at making sure these fires were lit, so no one in the village cared very much that he wasn’t very friendly. They were happy because he helped the men in their families get home from their work in the ocean. See, many of the men in the village were fishermen, crabbers, and shrimpers. That was how the town was able to eat. The men would go out on their boats many times a week and bring back loads of fish, crabs, and shrimp.
There was one time though that Mr. Tewdy needed help. It had been raining for about 2 days. The ocean was very angry, with waves almost as big as the cliffs. There were many ships that were still out at sea, trying to come home when the storm had started. The storm was so bad that the trees were lying down because the wind was blowing so hard.
Mr. Tewdy had continued to keep the fire burning for almost 2 whole days. He had a problem though. It took a lot of wood to keep the big fire pit blazing and he was running out of dry firewood. He had meant to cut more wood this week, but he had not had the chance because it started to rain. Mr. Tewdy had been running up and down the steps of the lighthouse so many times to take the firewood to the pit, that his legs were really tired.
The townspeople saw that the fire in the lighthouse was getting smaller and smaller. They were getting worried because some of the men were still out in the sea, and needed that light to come home with. They began to think something may be wrong with Mr. Tewdy. Mr. Waverly, the owner of the Lighthouse Inn, decided to go see Mr. Tewdy and find out what the problem was. He climbed up the steep cliffs to get to the lighthouse. It was a lot of work to climb up the cliffs because it was raining so hard.
When Mr. Waverly got to the lighthouse, he was out of breath. He saw Mr. Tewdy scrambling around the piles of firewood that were around the side of the lighthouse. He was soaking wet with rainwater.
“I am so sorry!” Mr. Tewdy said. “All the firewood is wet and I cannot keep the fire lit!” he exclaimed to Mr. Waverly.
“I am glad you are ok Mr. Tewdy. We were worried about you. We will figure something out. I will be back soon” Mr. Waverly said. He was relieved to see that the only problem was wet firewood. He didn’t know what the town would do without someone to run the lighthouse.
Mr. Tewdy began to have a strange feeling. He knew he was mean to the townspeople, and thought that none of them liked him. Why would Mr. Waverly say they were worried about him? He didn’t deserve people worrying about him. He started to think that maybe he should start to be nicer.
A little while later, after Mr. Tewdy had changed out of his clothes, he went back out to wait for Mr. Waverly. When he opened his door, he was filled with an emotion he never had before. He was happy!! Walking up the cliff was everyone in the town. They were all carrying lanterns. Mr. Waverly reached the top first and smiled at Mr. Tewdy.
“We are a town Mr. Tewdy. We all work together. So when you need help, we are here to help you” Mr. Waverly told him.
“Thank you all so very much! I am so sorry that I was mean to everyone for so long. I will never be mean or cross again!” said Mr. Tewdy.
So all the townspeople took their lanterns into the lighthouse and put them all around the windows. The lighthouse was brighter than it had ever been before. The lanterns placed around all of the windows made the lighthouse look almost magical. All of the ships made it home safe and sound that night.
From that time on, Mr. Tewdy kept his promise. He smiled and laughed. He went to all of the dances that were held in the village, and he helped everyone in their shops on days that it was nice and sunny and he didn’t have to be in the lighthouse. The most important thing of all was that he was never mean or cross to anyone ever again.
The End