At 14 years old, I was considered to be too old for trick or treating. Me, and a friend, who was also 14, decided to ask my parents if we could all go ghost hunting for Halloween.
The paranormal has always been an interest of mine. I've seen spirits all my life, and I had watched all the paranormal shows that were airing at the time. Ghost hunting, however, was new; something I hadn't done before. We were excited.
Our destination was Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. We lived in Lancaster County which was about an hour from Gettysburg. I had been to Gettysburg at different times with my parents. I knew the history and had explored the battlefield as well in town.
We had waited until after dark to head to Gettysburg. It was a cold night. Bundled in my pull-over hoodie, we explored the battlefield and later, the town. By then, it was late enough that not many people were walking around. The ghost tours had stopped except for one. There was a stand that was still open. It wasn't just a ghost tour but a ghost hunt tour. We decided to take it.
It was more than just telling stories of ghostly activity. We were given the chance to experience it ourselves.
Each given our own EMF sensor, we walked around the town of Gettysburg trying to pick up on ghostly presence.
After the ghost hunt tour finished, we bought a few EMF sensors from the tour guide. It was exciting. It was all we talked about on the way home.
That night began years of weekend ghost hunting for us.
All it took was two 14-year-olds and a Halloween night to create a life-long passion.