Past and Present
Sean Callahan and the Great Ghost Callahan
Mid-October 1976
In me hands I hold a hand-lettered invitation to the wedding of Great, Great-Grandfather and Carolyn, two days after the American Thanksgiving holiday. I wouldn't miss it for the world and quite honestly, I want to see the ghost of Daniel Gregg walking the world as a living, breathing being.
A phone call is in order and Carolyn and I have a lovely chat. She told me of Martha's nuptials and assures me that I can use her old room instead of renting another caravan.
"I wanted a small ceremony, just my parents and a few friends, in front of the fireplace in the parlor," she says, "but by the time we came up with the guest list, we found that we had more than just a few friends and family. We had to move everything to the church; the ceremony, the reception, everything!"
"And who is standing up for Great, Great-Great Grandad?" I ask.
"Claymore is. You should have seen his face when Daniel asked him. I never knew a person's face could have that many colors in it! Candy and Jonathan are going to be standing up with me, but I told my parents that while they could both walk me down the aisle, there will be no 'giving away'."
After a few more minutes of conversation we wish each other well, and I hang up. Me favorite haunt materializes by the telephone table, an interested look on his face.
"A very unusual turn, there, me boyo, don't you think?" he says.
"As I understand it, he is unique."
"Yes, indeed. And I'm glad to claim him as me own descendant. And I tell you something' else, Sean. I want to go with you and see this wedding. I've been workin' hard and I too can be solid now. I just can't hold it for more than four or five hours, and I can't do anything ghostly while I'm in that state.
This is stunning news. Who knew the great Callahan would get up to something like this? Was he jealous of Daniel Gregg or just challenged? Never mind, I have a more immediate and pertinent question.
"And how are you supposed to go back and forth if you're tied to the castle?"
"Ach! Mortals think they know everythin' when all they know is a tiny piece of reality. It's not the place that we're tied to, it's the thing! Yes, many do spend their eternities in one place because they died there and it's the most important thing to them, but the most important thing can be a person too, and it can change over time. You've become the most important thing to me, Sean. I can go where you go. So, I'll just hitch a ride with you. Be interesting to see a new land, it will. And I want to see Daniel's face when I show up at his weddin'!"
"And you think you can just show up at their marriage ceremony lookin' like you're ready to go to battle, what with your weapons? And you think anyone would welcome you with matted hair and beard? You look like you've been sleeping out of doors all your life."
"Will this do?" Before I could blink, the Callahan transformed himself. He was dressed in modern clothing, imitating my jeans and turtle-neck. His hair was still that coppery red-brown but with much more gray coursing through it and through his now neatly trimmed beard.
"You can introduce me as your father, Sean Callahan, Sr."
Two days before Thanksgiving
So here I, (or rather we) are at Gull Cottage. Carolyn's parents are already here, and the house is buzzing. I have a nice sit-down with the Williams' while Martha's in the kitchen and Carolyn is making sure the guest rooms are in perfect condition. Brad and Emily are naturally surprised at how much I look like both the Daniel Gregg they know and the portrait hanging over us. I tell them that we're distantly related, which is the truth. I just didn't specify what that distance was, or that Great, Great-Grandfather hasn't yet accepted me as his.
Martha is ready to leave by mid-afternoon, and I walk her to the door.
"Mrs. Peavey, I've yet to congratulate you on your recent marriage," I say as I put my hands on her shoulders.
"Thank you, Mr. Callahan," she responds with a sparkle in her eyes.
"Here's wishing you and that lucky man who caught you all the luck in the world!" I give her a hearty kiss on both cheeks and then open the door for her. Coming up the walk is the Captain himself. He gives me a deep look as he strides into the house and then stops suddenly.
"Who is there? Reveal yourself, immediately!"
Ah, he's caught the scent of the Great Callahan, who obediently reveals himself, albeit in modern form.
"Is that you, Callahan?" Great, Great-Grandad asks, a sneer forming on his lips.
"Aye, and who else would it be? I came along with the lad to see the New World, to see you and your bride, and to show you how much I've learnt since we spoke."
"Oh? And just how much have you learned?"
"Well, as your own eyes have shown you, I've learned how to travel with Sean, how to change me appearance, and how to be solid for hours at a time." With that he claps the Captain on the shoulder, laughing at his surprise.
However, Daniel Gregg isn't the only one here who is surprised. Carolyn, just as beautiful as she was when last I saw her, stops half-way down the stairs and gasps.
"Another one of you? Daniel, is he a ghost or a mortal and what is his name?"
We all turn as one to look at her, and a sight we must have been. Daniel and I are almost indistinguishable. I keep my hair and beard a little more neatly trimmed and I have just a tiny bit more red in my hair. The Callahan is shorter than we are and stockier, too. With all the gray in his hair and beard, he looks like he could indeed be our father.
"My dear, allow me to introduce Sean's spirit friend and the source of much of his income, the original Sean Callahan."
The Callahan advanced to the staircase to bow before Carolyn.
"Daniel, you've got yourself a queen for your wife! A lassie this beautiful is a rare find indeed, and from what Sean has told me, she's as gracious, smart and talented as she is pretty." Reaching his hand up to her, he takes hold of hers and kisses it.
Once again Carolyn opens her mouth to gasp, but this time there is no noise from her; she is struck dumb. I step forward to pull The Callahan away from her because he hasn't let go of her yet and he is looking at her the way a thirsty man looks at a cup of cold water.
"Darlin', he's not solid in the way our Daniel is. He can only go about the world for a bit at a time."
"That's the truth of it, fair Carolyn. I've not the true love that himself has to bring me completely into the mortal world. And I canna use me ghostly abilities when I am in this state, so you have nothing to fear from me."
Upstairs, were hear Carolyn's parents are talking, so we four hastily go outside before we have to explain The Callahan's presence to them. Daniel turns to him, a very stern look on his face.
"I'd rather not have to introduce you to anyone else, Callahan. Hang around us if you must but do it invisibly!"
"Boyo! Where's the fun in that? Just tell all and sundry that I'm the elder Sean Callahan, Sean's father and your uncle."
Daniel is getting red in the face while Carolyn's face has turned white. Knowing the Great Ghost as I do, I know there will be no help for it. Once he gets a notion in that wild head of his, he'll never let go. "It's probably best that we do that. The old man is as stubborn as the rest of us and we'll never hear the end of it, or his pranks either, if we thwart him."
"I could easily put an end to your parlor tricks, you charlatan" Daniel growls. "But I've too much to do to keep a sea-eye out for you right now. If you can behave and act as a normal modern mortal, I will let this presumption of yours pass. If not, I'll see to it that you never leave your castle again."
I am up early the next morning, not yet used to the change in time. The Callahan was on his best behavior last night, even though the entire company was astounded the strong resemblance. And with all the preparations for the holiday tomorrow and then the wedding, I haven't had a chance to sit and chat with Carolyn about anything at all. So here I am, at the crack of dawn, wandering into the kitchen to make a pot of tea to start the day. Some roosters are crowing somewhere in the neighborhood but turning on the water to fill the kettle drowns out their raucous noise. However, it doesn't overcome the sound of someone coming into the kitchen through the back door. Would Martha be coming in to cook this early? I spin around and nearly drop the kettle. There in front of me, holding an armload of firewood is Davy Morton himself.
"What are you doing here? How did you get in?" I demanded.
He is just as startled as I am and struggling to keep his load of wood in his arms, I can see the gears slowly grinding behind his eyes. "You're that man…you're the man from Ireland, right?"
"Aye. I'm Sean Callahan. Now answer me questions!"
"Well, you see I got out of prison and Mr. Peavey gave me a job. Normally, I bring Mrs. Muir's firewood into the house on Fridays, but with all the company this week, she asked me to bring it in today. Martha gave me her key." He stopped, looking at me for approval.
"Alright then, do your work. Want a cup of tea? It looks cold outside."
"That would be nice. Thank you. I'll just go put this load in the parlor."
I putter about the kitchen and find the bread and some jam and butter. All they've got for tea is the damn American teabags, but if you let them steep long enough you do get something that will remind you of real Irish tea. Davy comes a runnin' back to the kitchen, The Callahan hot on his heals.
"What in damnation are you doin' laddie, layin' out all that wood at this ungodly hour of the mornin'?"
"Ah," I interrupt. "I see you've woken my father. Well, I'd best introduce you. Da," I emphasize, "this is David Morton, or as he's called, Davy. Davy, this is my father, Sean Callahan, Sr."
Davy holds out a hand to shake, and asks, "Do you always sleep in your clothes, Mr. Callahan?"
My "Da" looks down at himself with a look of surprise. He's forgotten that if he were supposed to be asleep, he should have been in some sort of nightwear and he's at a loss as to how to explain why he's wearing corduroy pants and a heavy knit Aran sweater.
I clap Davy on the shoulder. "We were up late chatting with everyone, I think Da must have just collapsed right on his bed. Isn't that right, Da?"
"Aye, that's the truth of it, boyo."
The Callahan knows about Davy Morton and insists that he is also a descendant. I have my cup of tea and bit of breakfast and leave them to talk while I dress. By the time I come back, Mrs. Williams and Daniel are up too, and join them at the kitchen table. It looks like Davy and the Callahan are having a good chat. Daniel is watching them closely and Carolyn's mother is getting another cup of coffee but looking puzzled. For the moment, at least, everything is well. Of course the Callahan has to budget his solid time carefully, so after a while he announces that he is going to go and lie down again. Carolyn had put him in the alcove, but I suggest that we switch rooms. It's a natural idea, a son giving his father the better room, but I'm doing it so that he can "disappear" with no one being the wiser. Tomorrow will tax his abilities to the limit, I fear. After I "switch rooms" with him and see that he's "settled down", Emily Williams stops me.
"The resemblance between you and your father is understandable, obviously. Even between the two of you and Daniel, since he is a relative. But even that young man looks an awful like you as well. I don't understand it!"
"Well, you know about him and his cousin Eric passing themselves off as relatives on the Gregg side of Daniel's family. We know they're definitely not first cousins, but we can't discount the possibility that there is a connection back in the mists of time."
Emily shakes her head in disbelief. I thought she was going to tell me that she didn't believe a word of it and our whole story was going to come tumbling down about our ears. All she says, however, was "Well, the Callahan's certainly have strong genes."
Later in the afternoon Davy is back with more foodstuffs for the feast that Martha is preparing for tomorrow. After he brings in the several boxes in from his car, she tells him that she still has some work to do, and to go to the parlor and wait for her. Almost as if he was eavesdropping on their conversation, the Callahan appears sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper as if he'd been there for some time. I don't know why, but he seems to have become very interested in Davy and they spend the rest of the hour chatting.
"So, me Sean has told me all about your misadventures."
"I suppose you could call them that, Mr. Callahan. I didn't know any better back then" Davy replies.
"But you know better now, and you are learnin' a craft, aren't you?"
"Yes. I just want to live a normal life. The Peavey's are very good to me."
The Callahan nodded sagely. "Aye, so I've heard. Make the most of it me friend. Not many get such opportunities."
"Yes, sir. I'm trying. I'm not all that smart, and it takes me kinda long to learn most things, but I'm trying my hardest," Davy answers with an apologetic smile.
"Good lad! That's all anyone can ask." Callahan claps him on his shoulder. "We'll talk again tomorrow. Here comes Martha and she looks ready to go."
Thanksgiving Day
By mid-morning Gull Cottage is filled with the aroma of the turkey in the oven. Jonathan is sitting in front of the television set watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, and it looks grand indeed. During the commercials, he tells me more about the holiday and the Pilgrims landing a few hundred miles south of here. Candy is helping her mother arrange some flowers, Daniel, Emily and Brad Williams are taking a walk and "Da" is "sleeping in". The Peavey's will be here in the early afternoon, but first they are bringing some homemade pumpkin pies to the Schooner Bay Retired Seaman's Home. Martha, bless her heart, somehow found the time to bake even more than she was already doing, just to make these old men happy on this holiday. Davy will arrive on his own. My plan is to "wake" the Callahan at the last possible moment so that he will have the needed energy to remain solid for five hours. If he starts to fade, I'll shuffle him back to bed.
We sit down to dinner at 2 pm in the dining room. I have never, ever in me life seen such an amount of food. First, there's soup, then the turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce (I don't like that all that much), succotash (an Indian name for a mix of corn and green lima beans), candied sweet potatoes, green bean casserole (very good!), gravy, and of course fresh-made dinner rolls. Then come the desserts! Martha made three kinds of pie; apple, pumpkin and cherry and Emily Williams made cranberry-orange muffins (much better than the cranberry sauce).
With so many people at the table, there was a lot of noise with the different conversations. Carolyn, her mother and Martha are talking about the wedding on Saturday evening. Daniel and Brad are discussing business and finance and Ed, Davy and the children are teaching "Da" and I about American football. Of course, they assume that the Callahan knows all about what they call "soccer". It would have been a lot of fun if I could have told them that back in his day, they filled a sheep's bladder with grain, tied it as tight as they could, and kicked it around a meadow. If they had any rules for the game back then, I don't know them. They certainly didn't have a net. Probably the point of the game was to kick the ball as far away from your opponent as possible without splitting your head open on the rocks you were bound to fall over.
Finally the out-of-control ingestion of food comes to a halt when everyone looks at each other, rub their bellies and moan in unison. The Callahan isn't used to "eating", but I did notice that he managed to get down a reasonable amount.
The company divides itself up. Carolyn, Daniel and Brad are in charge of clearing the table and cleaning the dishes. Candy is separating the left-overs between the Peavey's and us. I go with Jonathan, Emily, Ed and Martha to turn on the first football game of the day and "Da" invites Davy to take a walk with him.
At six o'clock, there is another round of coffee and tea. Watching "Da" closely, I can see that the edges of his illusion are just a tiny bit ragged. I think that in fifteen more minutes I'll have to get him back in his bedroom. Fortunately, just about everyone is feeling rather tired by that time, so Gull Cottage clears out without anyone being the wiser about me "father".
I walk him to the guest room, because I was eager to ask him a question. He looks at me with surprise as I close the door behind me.
"So, you've been talking a lot with Davy, haven't you?"
"Aye, you could say that. Jealous are you?" he answered with a smile.
"No, just curious. You're cooking somethin' up. Come on, out with it."
"Maybe, maybe not. Time will tell. We both have things we could help the other with."
"Oh," I reply suspiciously. I know Great, great Granddad has been able to take over another's body, and he almost asked me to help him with Carolyn before he became solid. Should I assume that "Da" has the same ability? If so, why use Davy?
"Now, me boyo, don't fret. I wouldn't harm a flea."
Except that the next day, he spent another hour "chatting" with Davy. To make a long story short, I got him to admit that he had told him about his true nature. I was surprised to find out that Davy took it in his stride because he knows about Great, Great Granddad. Will wonders never cease? And "Da" claims that Davy is not opposed to whatever he's cooking up and they'll let Great, Great Granddad and I know what's going to happen very shortly.
