Linville Manor: Edward, Sam, and the Confederate Solider

Edward and Sam stood as silent witnesses to the healing we performed on the possessed woman in the basement of Linville Manor. Tom was still in the middle of a conversation with Edward about his guilt for causing the woman's possession, trying to convince him to let go of the guilt so he could cross into the spirit world. Ed was hesitant, but Tom convinced him to let us at least open a portal so that he could *see* into the other side and see there was nothing to fear. Ed reluctantly agreed, so Tom and I set our intentions of opening a portal opposite to where the time portal had just opened up. Every portal opening is different and this was no exception. A crack opened in the middle and then just like pushing elevator doors open, the portal widened to encompass the entire expanse of the basement. Tom asked Ed what he could see on the other side, and asked if there was anyone he knew over there that could come greet him. "His sister, and his niece," I said, "he absolutely adored his niece." Tom said he felt a female presence come through but it didn't manifest itself into anyone Ed recognized. Unlike other crossings, where beloved family and friends come through, Ed's guides were the ones who showed up to walk him across the barrier. "I want a bridge," Ed said through Tom. Tom told him to go ahead and manifest it. Immediately a stone bridge appeared from where we were standing through the portal to the other side. Ed was still hesitant, so Tom grabbed his hand and walked with him part way across the bridge. "This is as far as I go," said Tom. The guides started talking to Ed, and they told Tom that Ed still had some work to do on the other side; they were there to help him and guide him through the work that needed to be done. Ed finally let go of his guilt and finished his walk across the bridge alone. 

    As this was happening, Sam approached me and asked if he could go as well. "Of course, Sam. You are always welcome to go at any time." Sam wasted no time at all - there was no hesitancy on his part. He was greeted on the other side by a ton of family members - siblings, parents, nieces and nephews. They were all smiles having been reunited with one another. As I witnessed Sam crossing over the portal, I became aware of a man who walked down the basement steps and stood right beside me. He was a Confederate soldier. Interestingly enough, I had been alerted to his presence on the property in my morning meditation. One of the first things I told Winn when I arrived was that he had a Confederate soldier here. He nodded in agreement. 

    I told Tom as he watched Ed and Sam make their way across the spiritual boundary that there was someone else here ready to go. Tom turned to look at me and asked me to describe the man standing next to me. I don't know if this was for my validation or his, but I happily obliged. "He's standing here next to me in full Confederate regalia. He's wearing his hat, stands about *yay tall* (I gestured around 5'10" or so), and even has his saber hanging off the side of him. His cheeks are sunken in/gaunt. Like he's malnourished." "How old is he?" Tom asked. Tom answered his own question at the same time as I did. "Young/No older than 20." He sensed the portal opening and found his way to us.

Tom beckoned him to stand by his side. The man tried to walk right through the portal but Tom had him pause. As he did so he began to shed parts of his uniform. He threw his hat on the ground and took off his saber. "He never wanted to go fight in the war," I said. "His parents forced him to go." Tom said to him "This isn't your portal. Let's wait and see what it looks like for you." While the portal was changing, Tom asked for spirits to restore the man to his full self - the self he was meant to be. This soldier had suffered a brain injury which left him mentally deficient. He never completely recovered from his injuries. Tom wanted him to be restored to his fully intended self before he made the transition. The spirits obliged, and the next thing you know he was his original vibrant self. The portal took a new form that Tom described to us. A train tunnel with two sets of tracks running parallel through it. At the end of the tunnel a few hundred yards away was the entrance to the portal. Tom asked this man if trains had a significance in his life. "Yes. I traveled by train a lot in my lifetime." Suddenly a train cart slides down one of the tracks, and on it are two of this man's brothers as he remembered them when he left for the war. Tom was given visions of this man wrestling with the kids, as brothers are wont to do. "Wait, where's this man's cart?" Tom said, and as he did so a second cart slid in on the other set of tracks. The man got on the cart, and the two carts - one with his brothers and one with him - raced off toward the light. 

Winn validated what we were seeing by telling us about the connection to trains in the house. When restoring the basement, he found a set of model train tracks in the basement. Thinking they were just someone's hobby leftovers, he really didn't pay too much attention to them. But as time went on, other signs associated with trains started popping up around the property. Winn said in particular when a train goes by on the tracks located at the bottom of the property, the house would seemingly 'come alive' with activity. He asked Tom if this soldier was tied to those signs of trains. "Yes, absolutely." Winn already knew there was a soldier's presence around, as other people had seen visions of him. Now we know who it was! Later on when we walked the property, we came across the tracks. Tom said the trees formed the same tunnel like structure around the tracks that he saw in the portal. We all figured that this soldier likely traveled by train and found his way to Linville, which at the time had a doctor who served the community. I had gotten the sense that this man had perished somewhere near the property, and that's why he was still hanging around in his ghost form.