My life with Gerald Butler: I was one of Ireland's last lighthouse keepers

Being a lighthouse keeper was Butler's lifelong dream, and ran in his family for generations

Third-generation lighthouse keeper Gerald Butler who devoted 21 years of his life tending to lighthouses from Fastnet Rock to Bull Rock. Picture: Dennis Horgan

Lighthouse keeping had been a dream of mine from the age of four.

Having started life in West Cork, I grew up under the umbrella of these coastal giants. Not everyone gets the chance to live out their dream, but for me, it was a very natural progression. I was one of 15 children, and lighthouse keeping was on both sides of the family. My father and his maternal grandfather were lightkeepers, as was my mother.