"Not a Ghost of a Chance" by S.G. Benson
A shadowy man with a blurry face motioned for me to come down.
In the dim light, I saw a large room containing mountains of frayed furniture, dishes, rusty hardware, and tattered cardboard boxes overflowing with yellowed papers.
S. G. (Sandy) Benson lives in Warne, North Carolina, where she is a member of the North Carolina Writers Network-West. Her work has appeared in numerous magazines and newspapers, and she received awards from the Nebraska Press Women. She published her first book in 2021, My Mother’s Keeper: One Family’s Journey Through Dementia. Her second book, Dear Folks: Letters Home from World War II, 1943-1946 was released in 2024. She is working on a collection of autobiographic short stories, Girls Can’t Do That. Details at https://www.sandygbenson.com/
Author’s Talk
S.G. (Sandy) Benson
A dual career as a forester and a journalist immersed me in adventure. I spent decades living and working off the beaten path in America’s hinterlands. Occasionally, I came up for air and, appreciating my good fortune, promised myself that I’d share those tales someday.
That “someday” arrived when I retired in 2023 and moved to the mountains of western North Carolina. I jotted down a few memories and began telling those stories at a local Open Mic event. It amazed me when listeners responded positively and asked for more. I’ve been collecting these anecdotes for a couple of years, and I’m hoping to gather enough of them to publish.
Most of these stories are packed with action and (sometimes) danger. This one is different. Not a Ghost of a Chance took place in the Nebraska Panhandle, one of the gateways to the Black Hills. The region teems with history and the ghosts that accompany it. This vignette provides a snapshot of a playful incident that morphed into something that made me ponder my beliefs.
Because of this tale, I’ve expanded my vision for the collection I hope to publish. I realize now that my life’s work encompassed more than just fun and adventure. I lived through a time of societal change when women began breaking through the barriers that once kept most of them home, barefoot, and pregnant. My generation of women became the first to enter unapologetically into the then-mostly-male world of not just forestry and journalism, but other professions that stretched the norms of the times. I’m hoping it will be a fun read that will encourage young people of any gender to pursue their dreams, and that it will spark nods of understanding from their elders.
