Spirits, Ghost and Genealogy

     I couldn’t help myself:  maybe it’s that time of year…Halloween.  And I’m getting into the sprit!  Last week while I was helping out with a PTO book fair at my kid’s school, I was asked what I did for a living. Maybe it was the changing colors in the trees, the cooler temperatures or it was just the talk of decorating our house for Halloween, that morning before the kids got on the bus.  I couldn’t resist so I told them that “I talk to dead people for a living”. There was such a mix of expressions that came over their faces that I couldn’t keep a straight face and started laughing.

     Just the other day I was reminded of what I said, that day in the library.  Strange thing is it wasn’t a joke or a lie; I do talk to the dead and I listen to everything they have to say.  All of us who are searching in the world of genealogy isn’t’ that what we do. We read their letter, diaries, police reports, newspaper clippings and more.  A name of a loved one comes across our desk, either one of our own or someone that a client is asking us to research.  We collect all the information we have, and then review it. When we have finished speaking and listen to what that spirit has told us we seek more. Until we have a better picture of what this ghost is telling us.  Don’t forget some of us will even visit a cemetery or two to gather as much information as we can, granted we usually do it in the full light of the day.

     If any of you have ever watched one of those shows on TV like “Ghost Hunters”  you've noticed that one thing they are always out to do is debunk the stories they are told. They are looking for the facts, the truth. That is exactly what we do in the world of genealogy we hunt for the facts, the truth.  Along the way we listen to what they are telling us, research the facts and debunk any misconceptions that have been told.  

     So see we do listen and talk to ghost and spirits, even when it’s not Halloween. By the way I did tell them that I'm a genealogist, just in case you were wondering.