At noon the next morning Jane
stood on the dock in Bass River and
waved to Brian as the Albatross slipped
past the breakwall and out into Lake
Michigan. An almost deja-vu feeling of
sadness swept over her and she for the
first time really knew what centuries of
Mariners wives have felt as their men
went to sea.
The rest of her day
sped by as she guided tours all day at
the light, and then a quick supper and
off to the library to research
Lighthouse history. Just as She was
cleaning up the dishes, Brian had
radioed her on the 2-way. He was
loading up in a small port town 50 miles
up the coast. They talked for only a
moment or two but it made her smile
several times as she poured over the
dusty books in the back of the
library.
Three days later, Jane
met with the research department of the
Lighthouse Association in the library in
Saginaw. The light was closed due to
yet another summer storm over the Great
Lakes system. The 3 women and 2 men who
made up the team gladly listened to
Jane's ideas and made her feel like one
of them right off the bat. She was not
as passionate about Lighthouses as these
people, at least not yet, but there was
a shared interest. Having the whole day
to work they managed to get an enormous
amount of work done. The facts was all
gathered, and they were starting to
present them in text when they stopped
for the evening. They all decided on
supper at a little German American place
right across the street from the
Library. During supper they talked of
their families, jobs and love of
lighthouses. Finally Barb Souter asked
Jane about Amanda. She knew someone was
going to bring up the subject, it was
just a matter of time. As she told them
of her 3 encounters they all listened in
rapt attention. Jane was somewhat
surprised there was not one skeptical
brow raised during her whole tale. When
she finished they all started to ak
questions. "What was she wearing", Is
there a set pattern to her time, Where
does she disappear?, Finally after
answering about a dozen questions, she
held up her hand.
"Wait, I have a
question. You mean everyone of you
believe in Ghosts?"
Over the next
2 hrs and several drinks, Jane was
retold countless stories of ghosts
haunting the lighthouses of America. It
seems that almost every lighthouse has
at least one tragic tale in it's history
and many of those tales are linked to
stories of restless spirits. Hauntings
by former Keepers is very common, if
stories are to be believed. None the
less, even though so many stories
exist, the Official Policy of the
Association is not to expand upon, or
pass on any such story.
As Jane
drove home that night, the rain
continued and her mind was swimming with
all the information and stories she had
heard today. What once were just stone
towers to her, were becoming a subject
of complete fascination.
TO BE
CONTINED MAY 1st
Back to Lighthouse page
Part 23-May 1st
