The time is finally here. The witching hour approaches and the moon is waxing, nearing its full potential in just a few days.
It seemed appropriate to talk about ghosts and their stories today. I even have a few of my own. But let's start with the history of a most spooky day: Halloween.
I have been getting into my celtic background and learning all I can about the ancient Celtic people and their traditions. Halloween originated as a Celtic holiday called Samhain (Saw-wen). The Celtic people celebrated their new year - the end of summer, bringing in the cold and harsh winter of what we now know as Ireland, The United Kingdom and parts of France. Through lore and mythology, the Celtic people believed that October 31st, the veil between our world and the world of the spirits was thin. Thin enough for spirits and ghosts to wander amongst the living, either to wreak havoc on their crops and fields or simply to visit loved ones.
Since the veil between worlds is so thin, the Celtic people believed that ghosts made it easier for Druids, or Celtic priests, to make predictions about the future. This celebrations were often commemorated by a sacred fire, in which animals and plants would be burned as a sacrifice to Celtic deities to be used as prosperity in the coming winter months. They would wear costumes (typically made from animal hide and heads) to ward off evil spirits.
Over the millenia, Halloween has become a much more party centered holiday, a time for family and friends to enjoy the spooky and fun holiday, paved into existence by the ancient Celtic people.
And now it's time for what you came here for - a ghost story.
I live here in Anaconda, Montana. A mining town once teeming with miners and their families. Now for some context - I am an extremely heavy sleeper. My fiance, not so much. I had been dead asleep, and so had he. I woke up startled from a loud BANG on the left hand side of our house. My fiance slept right through it. It scared the daylights out of me. The next morning, I asked my fiance about it, and he said he hadn't heard anything. So I did what any woman in a horror movie would do - I went outside to see what it was. I know, I know. Dumb move. What I saw though - and I still don't quite understand this - a cut firelog. Like someone had thrown a piece of firewood at the side of my house. Now at first I thought it was just really windy that night and a branch blew into our house. But there are no trees anywhere near my house. And all of the surrounding homes have gas stoves. No need for firewood. But there that piece of firewood was (I haven't touched or moved it since then - and this was over a year ago).
It still freaks me out. Very, very creepy. Moving on!
I recently got in touch with Elise Adams of the Bozeman Paranormal Society. If you don't already know - they do ghost walks here in Anaconda! She had sent me a few of her own experiences to share with you all:
At the Copper Village Museum Elise and a psychic friend of hers had been using a spirit box (this sends out radio frequencies for spirits to interrupt, isolating the words they are speaking). They picked up a man named 'Tom' who had been looking for a knife he had leant to a friend, but could not pass on to the other side until he did so.
While Elise and her psychic friend were visiting The Harp Pub and Celtic Inn, they had been in contact with a man who had reportedly taken his own life, along with a woman (whom they could not identify) that was extremely sad and lonely.
I hope that you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it out for you all. Enjoy the season and make sure to light a fire and find some ghosts!
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