I
am the family genealogist, and my passion for this hobby is never ending. October is designated as Family History Month in
the United States.
Our
family collected stories of ghostly happenings and weird coincidences
a few years ago and I created a family book on my computer. If you
encounter such stories, and you probably will if you ask or if it has
happened to you, this is a very interesting way to celebrate Family
History Month.
Here
is an example of one of my stories:
Searsport
Maine: Cold Rooms of Family Farm on Turnpike Hwy.
I
was born in Bangor Maine but
lived in Connecticut for most of my youth. Nana and Grandpa's farm
was in Searsport, my favorite place to visit.
On
winter visits my sister and I slept under a flurry of quilts in an
icy room that allowed us to witness and amuse ourselves with each
visible breath. Our Mom and Dad slept in the guestroom down the hall
which overlooked the Penobscot Bay. Beyond their room is a small
bedroom where Mom used slept as a child.
Her
brother Gerry scoffed at her stories of cold chills and ghostly
rattling of her bed, which caused her great aggravation and
sleeplessness far too often. Being a very brave child, Gerry decided
to swap rooms with Mom. He was so certain he could prove his sister
was just making up stories to scare him.
That
night was fraught with eeriness, at first conjured up in a lad's ever
active mind; then it happened to him too. Cold! Rattling! And maybe
something else?
Gerry
tore the bedding apart. He even pulled some floorboards (imagine my
grandmother's fury), but he could find no reason for the unruly
rattles. He never again slept in Mom's room. And, never again did he
rib my Mom about the cold and rattling.
As
years passed and Mom grew up to marry Dad, her stepbrother Jimmy
slept in this tiny room on his visits to the farm. Years apart, Mom
and Jimmy independently experienced the presence of a spirit in this
room.
One
day Mom casually asked Jimmy if he sensed anything unusual when he
was in her old room. He chuckled and shared with her that he did
indeed. They now shared the same secret knowledge: No matter how hot
a steamy summer's eve might be, or how chilly the winter night might
become, this room would grow cold or colder as the sleeping person
became aware of a ghostly presence who spoke no words, jiggled the
bed, and caused the sound of a rhythmic heartbeat thumping in the
chattering cold.
How I wrote my book on ghost stories:
As we gathered each story, I used my Word program to write them and to include photos whenever possible of the persons in the stories or the homes, etc. When thoroughly edited and the final work approved by each family source to me, I printed the small book on 8 1/2 by 5 inch paper. I used 32 lb. HP paper because it feels more like a book and will easily run through my Kodak printer. For the back cover I used card stock. For the front, I used a clear heavy-duty plastic and then bound with spiral binding combs to neatly hold the book pages together. I have a paper cutter and a spiral binder machine. You can also take your book on a jump disk, etc. to a printer such as Staples or Office Depot and they will do this work for you. Another way to capture the stories is on DVD, giving each person their own personal disk of the book.
Capture
your ghost stores to become a part of your family history now.
