Looking for Home

This week’s Field Notes comes from a conversation that will be an upcoming episode of Echoes of the South™.

The topic we were exploring was family, community, belonging, and our search for safety. It was a conversation that unfolded naturally as we walked through Rose Hill Cemetery in Macon, Georgia, with friends who were visiting from out of town.

What made the experience especially interesting was that the two friends arrived with very different perspectives.

Prefer to listen? This Field Notes entry is available as an audio recording below.

One was already familiar with paranormal investigations, ghost-hunting television shows, and many of the concepts we regularly discuss. The other was much newer to the subject and still navigating the tension between her own experiences and what she had been taught growing up. She was open to the conversation, but understandably cautious.

As we walked through the cemetery, something unexpected happened.

The friend, less familiar with the paranormal, suddenly felt a sharp, searing pain in her head, which she described as “like a pickaxe.” She happened to be walking beside Morrighan Lynne at the time, who immediately noticed her discomfort.

According to Morrighan, a spirit was attempting to get her attention.

Once that spirit was removed, the pain subsided.

It was a reminder that sometimes people who are less focused on the paranormal can be surprisingly sensitive to it.

As our walk continued, we eventually gathered in an area off the beaten path. There, Morrighan connected with a spirit named Catherine.

What followed was one of the more moving experiences I have witnessed.

According to Morrighan, Catherine wanted help crossing over. But there was a condition.

She would not leave until her friends and family could go with her.

That detail stopped me in my tracks.

For all the stories we hear about hauntings, spirits, and the unknown, this felt profoundly human.

She was not looking for power.

She was not looking for revenge.

She was looking for her people.

The same thing many of us spend our lives searching for.

Family.

Community.

A sense of belonging.

A feeling of safety.

Morrighan called upon Archangel Chamuel to help locate those Catherine loved. What happened next surprised everyone present.

According to Morrighan, spirits began gathering.

Not one or two.

Dozens.

Eventually, she estimated that roughly fifty spirits had congregated together.

As they assembled, she called upon Archangel Gabriel and Archangel Michael to help guide them home.

What happened next was perhaps the most touching part of the experience.

Rather than crossing first, Catherine remained behind.

According to Morrighan, she helped usher the others forward, making sure her friends and loved ones went through before she did.

Only after everyone else had crossed did Catherine finally acknowledge that she was ready.

Then she followed.

Whether someone views that experience through a spiritual lens, a paranormal lens, or simply as a powerful story, the message stayed with me.

Even after death, the things that matter most may remain remarkably familiar.

Love.

Connection.

Family.

The desire to know that the people we care about are safe.

As we walked through Rose Hill Cemetery that day, surrounded by generations of Macon’s history, I found myself thinking about why so many of us visit cemeteries in the first place.

We go to remember.

To honor.

To reconnect with those who came before us.

But perhaps sometimes, those we are remembering are searching too.

Looking for familiar faces.

Looking for those they love.

Looking for home.

And if Catherine’s story taught me anything, it is that sometimes the greatest act of love is refusing to leave someone behind.