Do You Believe?
By Gail Lang

One afternoon I had the good fortune of wandering into a local bookstore where Nancy Rhyne was autographing her latest book, "Coastal Ghosts". She was so warm and friendly we quickly struck up a conversation. Between moments spent with other customers, I learned that Nancy Rhyne, the wonderful author of numerous books of Southeastern ghost tales, does not believe in the ghosts she writes about! This came as quite a shock since her "Tales of South Carolina Lowcountry" sold over 70,000 copies! My curiosity grew, but time was limited so we set another date to meet. There is surely a fascinating woman behind those books.

Two months passed before Nancy and I met again, and during that time I personally realized how strongly some people believe in spirits and ghosts. A visitor to SouthernPRIDE invited me to come and hear about her experiences with a ghost so I went to see for myself whether this particular spirit actually existed.

I sat for hours visiting with Mickey and her family as they related their experiences with the "Silent Watching" as they fondly called the ghost. They related numerous incidents when the "Silent Watching" had saved someone's life. One day Micky sat watching her boyfriend, Jimmy, butcher a deer he just brought back from a hunt with a very dull knife. He became agitated at his failed attempts to slice the meat and began angrily slashing at it. As he raised his hand to slash at the deer meat, his arm was held back. He drew his breath and he looked around. His anger turned to surprise. He said to Mickey, "She's here! Its like she's pulling on my arm!" Mickey saw nothing as the "Silent Watching" stopped Jimmy from hurting himself in his foolish anger.

Micky listening intently as Jimmy relates his experiences with "Silent Watching"

Another incident involved Mickey's mother who called from New York while I was there, to tell me about her encounter with the spirit during a recent visit. She was preparing a meal when the electrical system in the stove shorted. The "Silent Watching" grabbed her and pulled her away from the stove preventing her from being electrocuted. With smiles on their faces, Mickey and her family talked of the "Silent Watching", unafraid and thankful that, for whatever reason, this spirit lingered in the woods coming out when someone was in danger to protect them from harm.

I realized that whether or not I believed in this spirit did not matter. They believed and to them she was real. I was curious though and did a bit of research on the area. The ""Silent Watching" is a Native American woman, dressed in late 19^th century clothing. There is an ancient Indian burial grounds in the woods not far from Mickey's home, and across the river there once was a heavily traveled trading post. The pieces fit together to suggest there could be something to their experiences. I almost wish I had met their "Silent Watching". It might make it easier to believe.

The river and forest where "Silent Watching" is said to walk.

This experience prepared me for my next meeting with Nancy Rhyne. I asked her, "How can you write ghost tales of our area and yet not believe?" She smiled and told me her belief wasn't really so important. It was the belief of those who shared the stories that mattered. She knew each time she sat with people listening to their tales it was real to them, making it an important part of our legends and folklore. Besides, she was fascinated by the many tales and she felt it important to record them for history, for the future, for others to be able to share these stories. True or not, they are real to someone and are part of our culture and folklore.

The incident at the Alice Flagg grave stands out in Nancy's mind. A woman was frightened by a blue cloud rising up from the grave as she stood there with her children. To this day the children are still unnerved by the terrifying experience they witnessed. Who's to say what the explanation for that experience is? Nancy only knows that the fear in the woman's voice and the terror in the children's eyes was real. Whether Nancy believed the story or not did not matter, it was real to them.

These stories are part of Southeastern folklore. Nancy realizes that many of the tales she has recorded would be lost forever if she had not taken the time to listen to a few old people and record their tales. Many of the people she talked with are now dead. Her visits with them mean their stories will live forever and be shared with others. Nancy sees a greater importance to her tales, and she feels an urgency to continue searching for more before they are lost.

During our meeting Nancy took a moment and reflected back to August 17, 1967, the day that changed her life and began her career as an author. Oddly enough, her desire to write began as a way to overcome a horrible experience in her life. On that August day a copperhead snake bit her, not just once, but numerous times. She was bitten so many times that the snake totally depleted its venom into her leg. This horrifying experience and her recovery from it was her first tale to share with others. She discovered a passion in writing and began fervently looking for other material. It wasn't hard to find as life in the Southeastern states provides plenty. She started writing about the coastal states eventually becoming intrigued with old, forgotten tales. Sometimes she sat for hours with elderly, lonely people who cherished the time she sat listening; and other times she searched for endless hours in the vertical files of libraries. It all paid off. She found great fascination in finding the old tales and began writing books to share them with others.

Her first book of ghostly tales was a hit! People were very enthusiastic about "Tales of South Carolina Low Country." Her first autographing session at Belks in the Citadel Mall in Charleston, South Carolina, was unbelievable. A long line of people anxiously awaited to buy her book and have her personally autograph it. Nancy was very excited. Then she discovered that the huge stack of books everyone was waiting to buy was already pre-sold by phone orders. There were no books for these wonderful people to buy. Nancy didn't want her first fans to go away sad. She visited with each of them, took orders, and came back again to personally autograph each book. Nancy is a woman full of warmth. Her books are not just words she puts on paper to earn a living; they are part of her life. Her writing is her way of sharing our past and folklore with others to preserve it throughout time.

I hope you'll take time to read at least one of Nancy's books. They really are filled with fascinating tales from our folklore and legends that make us wonder. What is out there? What is reality?