Are They Out There?


I've said before that my ultimate hunt would be to go back to Aspen Grove with a producer/documentary team and document a ghost hunt with a team I've put together that I believe can help me stir things up. It's not just that the house was haunted by Civil War soldiers and a long tragic history over 250 years. It's that the house might very well be haunted by my family.

My father developed heart disease and so we moved west when I was 15 so he could be in warmer weather. When I turned 16, he passed on. The people living at Aspen Grove described seeing him on the property, dressed in the outfit we buried him in. They went back to see if he was still there and he was gone. They assumed he dropped by on a business trip. They didn't know he'd just died several days ago.

My mother swore she'd haunt the place. She loved Aspen Grove like a baby. As an historian and artist, it was her dream gentle Southern home. She passed on in 1998 and I know she was destined for that location for eternity.

My brother was dying in 2001 and he took a nap, woke up and said he had floated over Aspen Grove and told me all about how it looked right now. I thought it was amazing. He said he wanted to haunt there some day. He passed on a week later.

My sister in 2005 talked to me a lot about my ghost hunting and desire to prove the things we witnessed at Aspen Grove. She loved that place as much as mom did. She even got a tattoo of Aspen Grove. She promised she'd join our parents and brother there. She passed on in 2005.

A couple years ago I contacted Professor Hawkes from George Mason University. He was a dear family friend who lived in a house at the end of our driveway. He was an history professor and helped my mother to find the documents she needed to prove the estate's history. He loved the place and my family very much. I talked to him about my ghost hunting and he was intrigued. He thought he'd like to walk the rounds at Aspen Grove should he die. He died a few months later.

I can't imagine a place having any more promise of ghost activity than Aspen Grove the moment I step in the door with my equipment and team. It's inevitable that between the haunting with which I grew up with and my family members surrounding the place, something has to happen.

If I can't find proof of ghosts there, I'm hanging up my equipment forever.

Comments

  1. I so enjoy your posts! The Aspen Grove information is very fascinating-I hope that this dream becomes a reality for you-sorry to hear about the losses of loved ones and friends in your life-best to you as always!

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  2. I am also sorry to hear about your losses. I find it interesting that they all seemed to want to be at Aspen Grove. I bet you will find their spirits there.

    What is the title of your article in the paper?

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  3. Hey Mike and Julie;
    The article was in the Ahwatukee Republic section of the AZ Republic yesterday. I'm going to see if I can scan it and put it on my blog...

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  4. P.S. I appreciate your empathy. I have lost over 2 dozen very close relatives and friends over the years. I guess some folks would feel like they lost a lot, but I feel like I've gained a lot. By losing folks, I treat them every day as if they could be gone, hoarding memories and letting them know they're special. When they're gone, they simply went to the final destination before me and what a great group I'll have receiving me when I arrive--to wherever??? I know I'd like to haunt Aspen Grove too, but I think I'd like to haunt the old version of it before the condos...

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