History

This may seem a little like a history lesson. I really did not intend to make my whole blog a lesson, though. It' s just that I was thinking about my honeymoon this morning. I was wishing that I did not have to go to class and that I could still emerse myself in history all day...Oh, well, back to reality.
Did you know that I have the honor of working in a very historical place? My job is my absolute dream job. For a whole day or two a month, I get to go to an old house where others who have gone before us have lived and breathed and eaten and entertained and cried... The list could go on forever. My biggest pet peeve with some people who would proclaim themselves to be "history buffs" is that they take a much colder, aloof view of the events that have passed over the ages than I believe that they should. Those people that we talk about lived, had emotions, were afraid of death...just like us. They did think in different thought patterns. Their culture was different than ours. But the bottom line is that they were human beings who did not have the capacity to look at the events that they were living through with any more idea of the impact that those events would have than you or I do about the events that we witness daily. To them it was just life, and it was filled with uncertainty and pain and joy. So, I get the opportunity to tell the story of people who lived and breathed and died while I stand in the place that these people called home. Who wouldn't love a job like that?
Hubby does not believe that the dead can communicate with the living. I am not sure one way or the other. However, I do know that their are some things that cannot be explained. For instance, when I do go to my tour guide job, several rather unexplainable things have happened. And not only to me. I took my parents on a tour last week. I have to lock my group and myself into the house during the tour. That means that there is no other people in the house to make certain noises. While I was giving the tour, my mom became aware of the footsteps that were over out heads on the floor above us. She kept asking me if anyone could have gotten into the house. There have also been other instances where I have heard breathing and, once, I heard a voice. I was talking to a group, so I could not hear what the voice said. The "spirits" in the house do not really show themselves to many of the house's visitors. They like the tour guides, I think. They have been very open with most of us. While I have only heard of one person who saw one of them (a lady in an old fashioned dress), they do make their presence known in some way.
It's not only that, though, that makes me believe that the dead may, possibly, be able to communicate. There is an old country road near my parents house that I would have to go on to go home. When I go over the road, I feel my blood run cold. Now, for a long time I just thought that I was crazy. (And I still might be.) However, there have been about three or four times that I have seen a young man in my passenger's seat while I was on a certain bend in that road. He is always dressed in a white t-shirt, and he leaves as quickly as he appears. I cannot explain this. This is the only time that anything like that has happened to me. I wish that I knew the reason.
I feel as if I owe some explanation for the pictures. I chose to display a picture of Jeb Stuart (one of the greatest cavalry commanders, who also was an inventor). Jeb Stuart has always been one of my favorite people. He never touched a drop of alcohol in his life because he had made a promise to his mother that he would not. Even when he was dying (he had been shot at Yellow Tavern), he would not drink to alleviate the pain. He was one of the major players of the war, being referred to by Lee as the Confederate Army's "eyes".
I also chose to show a picture of John Bell Hood's coat. John Bell Hood was engaged to one of the young ladies who lived in the house that I give tours of. He was also interesting in his own right. A cavalry officer like Stuart, he also differed from Stuart. He had lost a leg in battle. Therefore, when he went into a fight, he had to be strapped to his horse. He was also in much pain. He constantly ingested alcohol and pain killers, which sometimes lead to some rash decisions. When President Davis replaced Joe Johnson with Hood, the Battle of Atlanta ensued. Johnson had managed to hold back the Yankees for weeks with his approach at defense. Hood, however, wanted a fight. It was in this battle that his fiance's brother was killed. Some think that this is the reason that the engagement was broken off.
Okay, this blog is really, really long. So I'll end the lecture here - and therefore the reader's pain. Until next time... :)