Smokey, you have done it again, another for the memories page Rosemary! Have missed your stories, so glad you are back writing Dawn -----Original Message----- From: eng-banbury-area-bounces@rootsweb.com [mailto:eng-banbury-area-bounces@rootsweb.com] On Behalf Of Joe Connell Sent: 01 November 2009 4:31 AM To: eng-banbury-area@rootsweb.com Subject: [BAN] Ghosts? You want ghosts? I was born immediately prior to the last World War and have long been an atheist and a sceptic in matters of the supernatural. My story starts one early December evening, some eight years ago. I live alone, and was returning home by public transport after spending a Sunday with my sister; having enjoyed the usual splendid meal and a glass or two of wine. I think it important to provide all facts that could possibly be relevant. It was my usual bus, travelling from Walsgrave to Alderman's Green, and at that time of the evening it carried very few passengers, indeed very often I was the only passenger. The journey would last some twenty minutes and I would alight at the penultimate stop. This particular evening I was vaguely aware of occasional fellow passengers as we stopped and started along the route. As I looked out of the window at passing houses and idly reviewed their Christmas decorations, I became aware of a lady seated several seats ahead of me. I had not noticed her board the bus, but she sat in those few seats that faced across the bus, such that she was in profile to me, and I realised that I knew her. Wearing dark clothing, she seemed about my age, was clutching a round, woven basket on her lap; and wore an old-fashioned hat with a small sprig of white berries pinned to it. As I searched my mind to identify her, she seemed to sense my attention and turned to smile in my direction. Yes, I certainly did know her, but who was she? I smiled back politely, as one does to acquaintances encountered in the street, and turned back to look out of the window. She was not a neighbour, I was certain - was she a member of a walking group, or had I met her in one of the historical societies? The time came for me to alight, and as I passed her she gave me a beaming smile and deliberately held my eyes with hers; but did not speak. I felt a wave of familiarity and warmth, but could still not remember where we had previously met. The bus pulled away from me and I watched it reach the terminus and round the little island without stopping, before returning in my direction. I determined to look again at my mysterious friend who would now be facing me from the brightly-lit bus. As it passed I was surprised to realise that the bus contained no passengers at all, only the driver. I mused on this event many times in the subsequent months and recounted the story to several friends and family members, who all responded the way that I would have done in their position; a shake of the head and a knowing smile. Ghosts are supposed to be accompanied by feelings of fear or apprehension, but my passenger had exuded warmth, friendliness, and something that can only be described as 'knowingness'. Several years after this incident, a cousin and I were researching the family tree and had traced the sole surviving nephew of our grandfather, who was seriously ill. We sat around his bed and talked of family relationships as we examined his cache of certificates and memorabilia. One photograph completely took my breathe away - staring straight out and apparently looking directly into my eyes, was my mysterious bus passenger. I could not speak, and was asked what the matter was, since I had gone somewhat pale. Eventually I asked our host about the lady in the photograph. She was Rebecca Sidwell, his grandmother's niece. My first cousin twice removed. Subsequently I pondered many times on this occurrence. A heavy meal, wine, a cold evening and a warm bus could very well produce a state of mind conducive to imaginings. Leaving the bus and its warmth could well have snapped one back into reality. But why Rebecca? A lady I had never met, and who I had consciously never been aware of. I had to accept the possibility of my mind raising a phantasm - but why Rebecca? A relative, yes, but at some distance, and not even in direct lineage. Why had she seemed familiar to me, was it perhaps a subconscious family resemblance? I determined to research the Sidwell family, to which I had previously not given any deep attention. When researching family history some boundaries have to be applied or the tree become quite unwieldy and can divert attention away from the more difficult and earlier ancestry. Eventually I received the third surprise to my disbelieving and materialistic attitude. The 1881 census stated it quite plainly. John Sidwell, his wife Martha Jaques, and their large family occupied Victoria Farm in Alderman's Green. Today a major artery through Alderman's Green is Jaques Road; halfway along it lies the Victoria Farm Estate; and GPS positioning together with the 1886 OS map shows that my flat sits on the exact spot of the farmhouse which belonged to the Sidwell family. -- Smokey Firefox & Thunderbird portals Sunbelt Vipre & Firewall protection Some useful websites: FREECEN - http://www.freecen.org.uk/ FREEBMD - http://freebmd.rootsweb.com/ FREEREG - http://www.freereg.org.uk/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to ENG-BANBURY-AREA-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message