Today’s make something prompt opened me to a new field and showed me something useful I’ve kept right in my pocket … with no clue about the power I carry so close at hand.

The prompt: “Work with light. Create an image using any light source in your home.”

I chose my cell phone flashlight. At the children’s prompting, I decided to try Morse code.

Here’s the revelation: Did you know that the phone built into your iPhone may already be programmed to send an SOS signal? Check it out. When I opened the flashlight app on my iPhone 4s, S-O-S was right there on the main screen. A quick finger touch, and I was signaling for help.

I wanted more. Could I learn to “flash” the word C-R-E-A-T-E in Morse code? To the Google machine!

I searched for a Morse code translator and got another surprise. There are apps for that! I downloaded Flashlight+ Morse Code, and in seconds I was tapping my six-letter word into a simple box. I clicked a “transmit” button, and my iPhone flashlight started blinking the rhythm for the word C-R-E-A-T-E:

-.-. .-. . .- – .

So simple! I projected the phone on my office window shade and shot a quick video:

Do you think my neighbors got the message? Maybe they are hunkered down in their homes, creating like crazy!

(Just inside the lower left corner of the video you might see a photo frame I set on my desk just yesterday. I haven’t put a picture in it yet, but this caption is there: “This little light of MINE.” What a coincidence!)