Mia Torres

Prof. Baret Magarian

ENGL 305

30 January 2022

Light Post

Light from the sun glistens off the black paint, the beam strong enough to reflect heat off the structure. Under the sun, the light post goes unnoticed, unappreciated. The light post recharges in the daylight, despising that it depends on its rival to be productive. It envied the sun’s power to draw crowds to the park, whereas the light post kept people away.

Every day, the light post sits patiently, waiting for the sun to go down and brighten the path. But at night, the park is lonely, and no one uses the lit trail. The post wished it could illuminate the way home for some young girl or a group of friends sharing a cigarette, but not even vandals approach the park. The light post knew part of its job was to deter crime, that the park was safer because the post’s nighttime luminescence scared off delinquents. It was proud that it did this job well but nonetheless wished someone would walk the pathways after sunset and value its work.

The light post was not entirely overlooked, but being noticed was not always a good thing. Sometimes, a toddler would kick the post’s base and hurt their foot. The post wished it didn’t injure the children in reply but couldn’t help being metal. More unintended attention came from the dogs who pissed on it–people too if they dared. At night, moths came and chatted to the light, but they used the glow and returned no favors–in fact, they rarely returned. On occasion, someone would test its material and lean on the post. Even if none of this was part of the post’s design, it appreciated any attention it could get.

Although the post constantly felt that it could never use its talents for their intention, it was honored to be a watcher of the park–and an occasional home for a bird nest. Ten feet tall, the post blissfully watched children chasing pigeons, couples walking together, artists sitting on benches to draw, friends gathering for picnic lunches.

But the light post can do nothing but watch. If it tried to participate when people were around to see it, someone would assume the light post was broken and try to change it. And the post did not like the idea of being changed, so the light post remained unlit. It would not shine until there was no one to witness it.