Beginning with the End in Mind
What do you do with a story like mine?
Climax for a Ghost Story
I.A. Ireland
“How eerie!” said the girl, advancing cautiously. “--And what a heavy door!” She touched it as she spoke and it suddenly swung to with a click.
“Good lord!” said the man, “I don’t believe there’s a handle inside. Why, you’ve locked us both in!”
“Not both of us. Only one of us,” said the girl, and before his eyes she passed straight through the door, and vanished.
(Who actually authored the flash fiction story above? Excellent question - it’s a mystery! Here’s a great summary of what we know and what we don’t about I.A. Ireland.)
I saw a woman named Muriel in a family movie in 2012 and felt supernaturally connected to her. I found out she died in a plane crash in 1972, and that crash became a famous aviation ghost story. That famous aviation ghost story was a major part of my childhood obsession with the paranormal in the mid-90s.
It’s a weird story, but it doesn’t have an ending. Not yet.
Using my 15+ years working in academia and corporate America, I’m going to try to use my project management and research skills to figure out how the story ends. No really, I’m working on a Trello board to help me plan and execute on this.
Research Questions
Here are the four avenues of research I’ve been poking around in. If you think I’m missing anything, let me know in the comments.
The Person: Who was Muriel and what was her life like? Is there anyone else on earth, besides my grandma, who remembers her and can tell me about her?
The Ghosts: Is there any documented account of the ghosts of Flight 401 where someone other than the Captain and Second Officer are seen? If so, who were they?
The Aftermath: What does it feel like to consume media that discusses an event in which someone I’m related to dies?
The Supernatural: Can I detect or sense Muriel’s energy in places that I know she was physically in, especially since I already feel connected with her in other ways?
Parameters and Ground Rules
I’m not planning to dig any more deeply into the mechanics behind the crash of Flight 401 or determine the validity of the existing ghost story involving Captain Loft or Second Officer Repo. For now, I am going to assume that the information I have about the accident and the resulting ghost story is accurate.
I’m also sensitive that there are still living people who were either on Eastern Airlines Flight 401 or are related to folks who were on that flight. The Orphans of Flight 723, an article published this week in The New York Times, is a vivid reminder of the reverberations that these tragedies can have across generations. As a result, speculating about other passengers is also off-limits.
Finally, as I research Muriel, I may come across information that is sensitive to her and/or people who are still living. In these situations, I’ll use my best judgment when it comes to sharing information publicly.
Budget
My initial budget for this research is $1,000, which will include books, tools, memberships, and anything else that will help me figure this story out. Future travel, if needed, will be budgeted separately. When I hit this budget, I’ll provide an account of how I spent it in case you’re curious.
Will my conclusions be 20% as interesting as I.A. Ireland’s tale? Probably not, but let’s try and see what happens.
An Ask
Beginning today, I’m also looking to talk to other people who have a family ghost story that they would be interested in sharing, either via a first-person narrative and/or interview. I’m curious about the story and your connection to it, how it has impacted you, and whether you’ve done any digging into it to try to figure out what happened. If you’re interested in sharing, email me at familyghosts@substack.com. Nothing will be shared here without your express permission.