“A Walk in the Hereafter”

(A Ghost Story)

It’s taking a lot longer than I thought it would. Of course, there’s no guidebook for dead people, at least as far as I know. After three months I’m still trying to get used to being dead. Even using that word is hard to adapt to. When death comes, people usually use terms like “He passed away” or “She’s in a better place”. It makes them feel better but the person is still dead and words can’t change that. I guess it’s just a way that people try to adjust to the whole situation. And one of the biggest things I’m trying to adjust to is that I’m dead but still functioning, I’m now officially a ghost. That’s right, a ghost is telling you this story.

What really made me start thinking about that is a special day that happens at this time of the year. Tonight is Halloween and it’s already dark enough for things to get started. As you know it’s the night that children will dress up as all kinds of scary things then go out, knock on the doors of strangers and get all silly from eating the sugary treats that are dropped into their bags. Halloween has grown so much over the years that it’s now practically as big as Christmas. Back when I was a kid we had to make our own costumes. With some imagination we could turn our old clothes, some fake blood and our mother’s make-up into an acceptable monster of some kind. You kids these days are lucky to have parents who’ll take you to a Halloween store and buy you an expensive, ready-made costume that you’ll wear exactly once. I’m standing here watching and it looks like you’re all wearing those right now. Oh, sorry, I’m getting a little off track here.

Nobody wants to be a ghost but I guess when it happens you just have to make the best of it. So as I try to do that and think about making the best of my situation, I thought about the ways that Halloween depicts ghosts. I never gave it much thought until I became one. Ghosts have been shown as a person wearing a sheet with eye holes cut out of it. That’s been one of the preferred ghost looks for decades of TV shows and cartoons. I think it came from the days, many years ago, when people who died, yes died not passed away, were wrapped in shrouds of linen before burial. Today it seems the most popular way to depict a dead person is by showing him or her as a zombie. Actually zombies aren’t really ghosts because they’ve been reanimated so they can move around as though they’re still alive. It’s all tied up in witchcraft. I never paid much attention to zombies but it’s the same thing as people wearing sheets; they aren’t even close to looking like real ghosts. I can tell you kids in the three months of my being a ghost I haven’t seen a single person in a sheet or any zombies either, not one single one.

I’m going to let you in on a little secret that just might come in handy for you someday; ghosts look just like you and me and everyone else. No sheets, no bulging eyes and no tattered clothes, just regular looking people. They’re people who can’t fly around and people who don’t stagger around with their arms stretched out to grab someone. They aren’t scary. Ghosts look totally normal except you can’t see them. I mean living people like you can’t see them, just other ghosts like me. We ghosts can see and hear everything including living people. But the problem, the part that’s really hard for ghosts is that you can’t see or hear us. And you can’t feel us or touch us either. Somehow that doesn’t seem fair. Remember when I told you how I’m having trouble adjusting to being a ghost? Well, that’s the hardest part for me; wanting to talk and listen and mix in with people and not being able to. And I wish I could give someone a really big hug. But there is one thing I’ve learned. About a week after I died a fellow ghost told me something she had learned. She told me that we ghosts can speak to people through their hearts but not their ears. People don’t hear us in the regular way but somehow they get our message. I think that’s pretty cool. I have a feeling you can kind of hear me right now because you keep looking in my direction. Gee, maybe I got through to you, you know, to your hearts.

All things considered, being a ghost is kind of boring. We don’t need to eat so we can’t enjoy a tasty hamburger or a sweet dessert. A glass of lemonade or ice tea just goes to waste. We don’t need to sleep because we don’t get tired. Ghosts don’t shower because we don’t get dirty. And we don’t live in houses so we spend a lot of time walking around and sitting on the grass or park benches. We have lots of spare time with nothing to do. It’s really a bummer.

So here I am walking around under the streetlights while bunches of you kids in costumes hurry past me to get to another door and another treat. When I was a kid the tricks were just as important as the treats. To be honest it was the boys who did most of the tricking and it was all pretty innocent stuff. We did things like sneaking a bar of our mother’s soap out of the house and then smearing it over the windows of people who stiffed us last year when we knocked on their door and they didn’t open it. Trick or treaters carry grudges like that. Tossing a roll of toilet paper into the neighbor’s tree was also a favorite. While I’m walking around tonight I’m going to keep my eyes open to see what kinds of mischief you’re all into these days. Kids have always been pretty creative when it comes to playing pranks on people. From your conversation it sounds like you have an idea or two.

After the trick or treating hours are over and you kids are back in your homes I’ll probably sit down on my favorite bench in the park, the one on the hill beside the duck pond. When the sky is clear and full of stars like it is tonight it makes it a lot easier to wait for the sunrise. I always have another tomorrow to wait for. And I think you’re going to be excited when I tell you about what’s happening tomorrow. I sure hope you’re able to hear me from your hearts. It’s going to be fun but I think I’ll wait until morning to fill you in. See you then, I hope!

Okay, it looks like you managed to get some sleep last night after all of that trick or treating. Did all of the sugar buzz wear off yet? My night on the park bench wasn’t all that interesting except for a couple of shooting stars that passed overhead. It was very peaceful and that’s a good thing because today is the day for excitement. I’m going to walk over to Garcia Street and hang out there because today is Dia de los Muertos. That’s how they say it in Spanish. In English it’s called Day of the Dead. See, there’s that word again, dead. It’s nothing to be afraid of. Anyway, I know you’ve  heard of it because I heard you talking about it last night. Day of the Dead is celebrated by Mexican people on the day after Halloween even though the two days have nothing to do with each other. I heard a lot about it back when I was still alive but I never got the chance to experience it for myself. Today I’ll finally get that chance. You know that big, stucco archway on Garcia Street, right? Well, today it’s covered with signs about the big day and all of the things that will be happening in the neighborhood square. I’m heading there now, it’s only a couple of blocks. Come on. Follow me with your hearts.

So here we are and here is what I want to tell you about Day of the Dead. Wait a minute. You know what? I think I’m going to call it by its Spanish name because Dia de los Muertos is much more fun to say. Okay, here’s what I know. Even though the day is about dead people it’s not meant to be sad like a funeral, or spooky and scary like Halloween. Nope, Dia de los Muertos is a celebration of people who were a part of families and the community and who just happened to die. Heck, everyone dies someday so the Mexican people say, “Just because a person is dead doesn’t mean they aren’t still with us.”

 Look around the square and you can see what’s going on. Instead of being sad the people have turned it into a celebration of the lives of people who passed away. Okay, I used that term, sorry. Anyway, even though Dia de los Muertos includes saying a few prayers at those brightly painted altars it’s mostly happy music and dancing, colorful Mexican costumes and great Mexican food. Look around and you’ll see that there are plenty of people dressed like ghosts but not at all like your Halloween-style ghosts. Mexican-style ghosts have faces painted like smiling skulls and they’re into laughing and waving while they dance for the crowd. And see that woman over there in the bright yellow and red dress? She’s actually dancing with one of the fake ghosts. Wouldn’t it be great if you really could dance with the real ghost of a loved one from long ago?  There are a few people from my life that I would love to dance with again.

Here’s a fun little fact for you. Right now there are real ghosts here. You kids can only see the living people in ghost costumes but I can see them plus the real ghosts who came to watch the celebration. I wish I could speak Spanish so I could talk to them. They’re doing the same thing we are; talking with their hearts.

Well, I’m going to head over there to that bench by the stage. I wish I could eat one of those fresh, sweet sopapillas. In my living days I didn’t eat them because they’re fried and the cholesterol was bad for my health. But now, even though I can’t eat them I can at least say, “What the heck, they won’t kill me.” And even though I can’t eat anything I can still spend some time sitting here and enjoying that Mariachi music. I never was much of a dancer before I became a ghost but now, since no one can see me, I’m going to get out there and dance like crazy. That’s one of the good things about being a ghost; you can’t embarrass yourself. That’s a good lesson for all you guys who are still alive too. I see that you’re starting to wiggle around and feel the music inside you. Good for you Don’t worry about being embarrassed. Get out there, dance, laugh and have fun while you can.

I have to admit I wasn’t sure what to expect on my first Halloween as a ghost but it seems like it has all worked out okay. I mean, what choice do I have, right? I’ve learned that being a ghost can be many things, both spooky and fun. It’s hard to decide which one I like better so I guess from now on I’ll just enjoy both. Well, I hope things go okay for you. Remember, we can see with our hearts so maybe, if you try real hard, you’ll see a ghost that you loved too. Take care of yourselves, my new friends, and maybe we’ll see each other back here next year. Adios!