I’ve long been fascinated with ghosts and haunted tales. That’s probably why Halloween is my favorite holiday. However, the thought of actually coming in contact with a ghost has always seemed frightening to me. But that was until I had a spiritual connection with Papa, my late father-in-law, that leads me to believe he is aware of Lydia’s existence and continues to be proud of Randy’s accomplishments.
This photo of Papa was taken when Jack was born.
This past Saturday night, my friend Amy and I participated in a Chicago Ghost Investigations (CGI) tour at an old warehouse near Chicago’s China Town, which is supposedly home to dozens of spirits. During prohibition, Al Capone used the warehouse for his underground operations, and today several artists rent space inside the building, which, from an overall perspective, looks like it could be a used as a backdrop for a SAW movie.
CGI is actually doing on-going research inside the warehouse to try and identify the spirits that live there, and they rely on these public tours to collect some of their data. Before we started the tour, real-life ghost hunters provided us with a crash course in “Ghost Hunting 101,” explaining that in addition to encountering a building ghost often times attendees bring their own ghosts with them. I immediately turned to my friend and said if any spirit followed me, it would be Steve, my mom’s late boyfriend, or Papa.
The ghost hunters assigned Amy and I to a group of four and then armed us with a flashlight, dowsing/divination rods, a thermal scanner, and an EMF scanner before essentially setting us free in the dark, damp and very eerie basement of the warehouse. CGI did recommend we set up our equipment in an area that’s known to have activity with a spirit they believe to be Al Capone’s accountant.
Each person in our group had a job to do. Ashley was to hold the thermal and EMF scanners, AJ was to ask the spirits questions, Amy was to record what was happening and I was to hold the dowsing rods. These are the tools that enable communication with the spirits through a series of yes and no questions where the spirits are asked to please cross the rods based on their answer. The ghost hunters recommended that we ask the spirits the same questions twice to confirm the consistency of the responses.
While I steadily held the rods at chest level, six inches apart and parallel to the floor, AJ introduced us and asked, “Are there were any spirits in the room?” If the answer was yes, AJ asked the spirit to please cross the rods. A few seconds later the rods crossed and I almost lost my shit (sorry that is one of my favorite sayings right now). Then AJ went on with the questions and we learned the spirit was a male who was not associated with the warehouse. AJ then asked the spirit, “Are you with someone in the group?” The rods crossed for yes. My heart started to beat rapidly and my adrenaline rushed because at that moment I had a feeling the spirit was “my ghost.” AJ asked the spirit who in the group the spirit came with and the rods were at a position that didn’t point at anyone directly; he proceeded to ask “Are you with Sarah?” The rods crossed for yes, and my heart started pounding even faster. Practically in shock, I immediately asked AJ if I could start asking the questions because I believed it was Steve or Papa wanting to reach out to me.
I started by asking, “Steve if this is you, please cross the rods.” Nothing happened. I then asked, “Papa if it is you, please cross the rods.” The rods crossed and I was overwhelmed with emotion. It was like I felt fear, joy, excitement, nervousness and sadness all at once.
My next question was “Papa, please cross the rods if you know about Lydia, your granddaughter” and the rods crossed. Through this communication, which was approximately 30 minutes long, I asked several yes or no questions and learned he wanted me to tell Jack and Izzy “Hi,” give Lydia a kiss for him, tell Jody and Amy either “Hi” or that “he loves them” (I can’t remember the exact question I asked) and tell Randy that he is “proud of him.” I also learned that he is aware of Amy and Caleb being engaged. I also made sure that he knows we all love and miss him dearly. I asked if he was happy and he crossed the rods for yes, which put me at ease. When I asked if he is always with us, I didn't get a definite response.
I know some might think this is a hoax, but I made sure I kept the rods as still as possible to ensure I didn’t accidently manipulate them. I could feel the force of them moving; some responses were stronger than others. And the most amazing thing happened when I asked Papa to give me hugs. The rods moved pretty strong towards me. There was no way I could have manipulated that unless I twisted my wrists, which I didn’t. Also, Ashley was holding the EMF and thermal scanners, which confirmed a spiritual presence. She told me that each time I asked a question, the EMF scanner didn’t really engage, but when Papa was answering, the scanner displayed strong activity.
After I told Papa “bye,” I asked my friend, Amy, her perception of the situation. She told me she was glad I got to experience it and that once I determined it was him everything seemed to flow quickly. She said it seemed so personal that she felt like the rest of the group should have left the room. I felt so peaceful after it was over because for me, it confirms he is in heaven and watches over us.
We then moved to another room where we believe we communicated with a prostitute who was murdered in 1943, at the age of 50, by one of her customers. We also learned she lived near the warehouse and knew Al Capone. We tried to get her name using a radio frequency box but we couldn't make out what she was saying, but we all heard something. In this encounter, my friend, Amy, held the rods and she felt the rods move as I had. However, in my situation, Papa’s answers flowed better and seemed stronger because I knew him and was able to ask relatable questions. Whereas, with this female spirit, we were grasping at straws trying to figure out what to ask her so we could learn more about her identify.
Since then, I can’t get the Papa experience out of my head. I want so badly for it to have been real, however, the skeptic in me has been trying to figure ways in which the situation could have been manipulated. But in all honestly, I don’t think it could have been rigged and my friend doesn’t think so either. Even Randy, who called my experience “bullshit,” doesn’t think CGI could have manipulated the situation.
Whether you think my account is real or not, I truly believe I was communicating with Papa, and I feel very fortunate to have been able to have such a magical experience. And even if it is was all smoke and mirrors, the truth is Papa’s spirit still lives on through his family and friends. We all carry him in our hearts and have fond memories of him that will last a lifetime.