Paul and Mary, local small- town detectives, were known for solving crimes. Now that Mary had died, what was Paul to do? He had never solved a case without her help. Perhaps his detective career was over.
One morning Paul noticed that the book beside his bed had been rotated. The next morning his wristwatch which he had left on the night stand was on the floor. A repeated occurrence of moved objects got Paul’s attention. Mary might have died, but she was very much present in spirit. Breathing a sigh of relief, Paul knew that because she was alive in spirit, Mary would continue to help him in a ghostly fashion to solve mysteries.
Rolling Green Sr. Retirement Community is where Paul lives. It is a comfortable small community nestled in the Green Mountains of Vermont. The residents became friends and always helped each other. As spring drew near the year after Mary died, strange things began to happen around Rolling Green. The residents enjoyed the coming of warmer weather and the opportunity of being outside. One morning they noticed the neatly planted spring flowers lining the path to the entrance had been uprooted and moved to the back of the building. The Welcome sign had been turned around and the Activities For The Week notice was now hanging upside down in the entry way. The community came to Paul asking him to solve the mystery. “I’m not sure. I don’t have Mary to help me.” he said. They responded, “Please try!”
Paul began reflecting on the objects moved in his apartment. Knowing that Mary was with him in spirit, he considered the possibility of other spirits being present in the Rolling Hills community. He decided to be patient, watch and wait for clues. Soon thereafter, as the day was ending, Paul felt Mary’s presence directing him to the front entrance of the residence. Sitting quietly on a bench just outside the door, he watched and waited. Suddenly the Welcome sign began to slowly turn followed by the flowers along the walkway rising up and disappearing around the corner. Next morning the activities schedule was hanging upside down. Giving Mary’s spirit credit, Paul began to see the solution of the mystery.
Paul called the community together. He told them about Mary’s ghostly presence in his life. He knew that she was there because things in his apartment would be moved around at night. He reported how she had solved the mystery by leading him to observe the front entrance the night before. Sure enough he watched the transplanting of the flowers, the rotating of the Welcome sign and the Activities sheet.
Paul’s suggested solution to the problem was that all residents who had lost a partner to death go back to their apartment and have a talk with said person. “Please ask your dead partner to confine his or her evening actions to your apartment. Leave the outside work to the maintenance department.” Paul was greeted with a blank stare. “Ghost?” they asked. “We don’t believe in ghosts!” they all exclaimed. With that the lights began to blink, a wind blew through the room and suddenly the door slammed!