May-Polish Legend

 

ROYAL  LIGHTHOUSE  WARDEN  

 

1. There is a small village called Rozewie in the northernmost part of the Polish coast. There has been a lighthouse there for centuries, and its light has many times saved people’s lives, showing them the way to the shore or harbour.

 

2. In the old days  the king nominated a  young boy called Wit the Royal Lighthouse Warden. His duty was to make the lighthouse fire and watch it all night. Wit loved his occupation, he chopped wood, carried it from the forest and made the fire every day. He preferred being in the lighthouse to spending time with his peers in the village.

 

3. His duty was to light the fire every day before dusk and watch it until dawn. He was not allowed to fall asleep before sunset, and when he finally did, he was cradled by the wind and rustling of the waves hitting the stone wall surrounding the lighthouse.

 

4. In the village, behind the forest, lived Maryjka, Wit’s fiancee. She always wanted to keep him longer by her side, but he would always refuse, because he had to light the fire in his lighthouse. Still, he couldn’t resist dreaming of a day when he would finally live in the lighthouse with his young bride. He didn’t want to be lonely any more.

 

5. One day Wit took Maryjka to the lighthouse with him. They walked through the beech forest, admiring wild roses, rowan trees and huge ferns, under which gold and red flowers bloomed beautifully.

 

6. When they reached the lighthouse, Wit asked Maryjka to come in and showed her the room in which they were supposed to live after the wedding.

 

7. Then Wit and Maryjka climbed very steep and high stairs up to the top of the lighthouse. From there, they could see Maryjka’s cottage in the village and a boat sailing towards the city of Gdańsk.

 

8. Wit also told Maryjka a story of Sztorm – the sea devil. It was a truly frightening monster, with a huge mane covering its whole body. It sank many ships and made many people drown. Whenever it let anyone see it, this person could be sure of a terrible fate or even death.

 

9. Soon a windstorm and downpour started, and the waves were so high that they started reaching up to the very lighthouse. Suddenly a huge head appeared in a flash of lightning, followed by the sight of two arms creeping along the walls. It was Sztorm – the sea devil! Wit and Maryjka literally froze – they remembered all terrible prophecies the appearance of Sztorm announced!

 

10. After a few minutes Wit heard screams and voices of people begging for help. He asked Maryjka to watch the fire and rushed down to rescue the drowning sailors.

 

11. Maryjka stayed there all alone. She was thinking about her fiance and the oath he took: “I will never let the sailors down, even if it was to take my life”. Maryjka started calling out Wit’s name, but her voice disappeared among the waves and the noise made by the storm.

 

12. Hours passed. Gradually the fire started to wane. Maryjka put some pieces of wood in the fireplace and ran down to the beach to find her fiance. What she saw was his dead body brought to the beach by the waves. The unhappy girl spent a long time sitting by his side, crying and thinking what she would do now, all alone.

 

13. After a while Maryjka decided to come back to the lighthouse and watch the fire as Wit would have done. Since that day she became the Royal Lighthouse Warden and stayed there to perform her duties until the day she died as an old woman many years later…