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We have tried a few times before, but finally we were able to have the neighbors over for a cup of coffee and some pie, as well as show them the house. They are a nice couple, but when we have invited them, there has always been something, generally Covid related. They are a couple in their 80s who have been together for *sixty five* years, with about sixty of those spent living in the house next door. They still go on ski holidays up north every year, and they have about 15 classic motorbikes that they lovingly care for. The wife also does clay pottery work, the husband helps his sons build decks and such, and they are always active outside.

>They put us to shame. 


![IMG20231223211732.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/tarazkp/23tkopKXasr6htyQLnNyWyqVzT438KAigday6GPcLZWDfmTbMdS2EiBpqyLXFn7fvxovQ.jpg)



So, we had them over to show them what we have done to the place, as they have been in and out of here over the years a few times, depending on who was living here. The last couple before us and their two children who were raised here, were an odd sort, so they haven't been in for a long time. But, the husband also maintains a Facebook site for history of the neighborhood, adding old photos when things looked very different. Having been around these parts and part of the community for their entire lives, they do know a lot, and I asked them about some of the previous owners.

> Was there ever a little girl living here in the mid-60s?

The reason I asked because in one of the *cold* attics, there was a little girls room set up with wooden walls painted pink, and I found a few old school books. This might sound okay, but it was the kind of thing you might come across in a horror movie. 

But more than that, for the last few years has had a "night visitor" occasionally, which sounds like I should be getting a divorce. But this one is a little girl who comes and sits on the bed so that you can feel the pressure of her on your legs. I have felt it twice as well, but it was waking my wife up a couple times a week. She knows it is a girl, because one night she woke up and she was standing there looking at her, and then faded into the darkness. 

> My wife, nor I, believe in ghosts.

*But I guess it is a ghost.* 

It isn't a scary feeling though, and my wife didn't feel any fear from the visits. However, since we had the opportunity to ask, it was interesting to discover there were several girls that lived here around that time and years after that fit the description, which is a girl that looks a bit like our daughter, also with long, dark hair - which isn't that common in Finland, especially back then.

What was also "interesting" to discover was that one of the families that lived here had a daughter with epilepsy that they had institutionalized, because they couldn't take care of her. They had another daughter also, who was found dead in a lake in the city from an apparent suicide at the age of around twenty. 

>*Get out....*

There was another family with three girls, but we didn't hear much about them tonight, so perhaps the horrors of their lives will come up over the next coffee. 

Regardless, it is interesting to hear even slivers of the history, where for instance, the original builder of the house was very, very "red", and even paid to have a communist statue erected in the city at one point. When we were renovating, I had to remove some pieces of the ceiling and pulled out plenty of Neuvostoliitto (USSR) magazines used as insulation and a barrier for the sawdust. They definitely had an eye for great layout design. 

Another one of the owners was a music composer and producer, and would have some famous (old) Finnish musicians coming by to write songs and have a drink. [Katri Helena](https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katri_Helena) is a name I actually know, and is still active, even though she is 78 years old herself. I was just looking, and she has 32 albums listed.

The neighbors stayed for a couple hours just chatting away and while I wasn't able to follow a lot of it, it was obvious that what they were talking about was interesting to my wife also. They are obviously skilled story tellers, which I think comes with experience and refinement. When you are able to tell the same story dozens of times over the space of years, it is possible to improve it. I like this approach, where rather than having to constantly add something new, it is possible to add value by adding the same thing in a better way. 

It is not every day that I get to sit down and chat with octogenarians, and the last time I really had a chance to do so was with my grandfather, who I would spend a lot of time with, but I was also quite young. We would sit and talk when I was about ten, and even though he had slowed down a lot, he still had a long repertoire of stories that he would tell, using words and figures of speech that young people just don't use.

> I miss those conversations.

A lot is lost through the passing of experienced knowledge, but it is less the information that they have, and more the way they are able to tell a story. There aren't many great storytellers anymore, which is evidenced through the lack of character depth in most movies now. Back in the day, entertainment wasn't about watching a film, as much as it was about sharing experiences over a cup of coffee and a slice of pie. Storytelling was a part of life, and the speaker could see the reactions of their story in the faces of the consuming audience directly. 

>That has value.

More ghosts of the past.

Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]


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