David McLean's thoughts, incorporating Life Is a Journey.

There is a district, or area in Port Glasgow, called 'Boglestone'. When I was a young boy, living in Port Glasgow, this stone was located on the outskirts of the town, and on the road to Kilmacolm some 4 miles away to the south. Over the years, like most towns after the war, fast growth took place, and my home town was no different. Soon the 'Boglestone' was overtaken and surrounded by new houses, and new families. The history of this stone was either not known, not taught, or forgotten.

The stone you see in this photograph, which was taken in 2008, is only a part of the original, which was at least twice as high, and not so clean. It has been sanitised to fit in with the newer, cleaner surroundings.

A 'Bogle' is an old Scots word for a ghost, or spirit, and these ghouls were believed to live in and around this stone monument. When some "unco' happy" Portonians would pass this area, on foot, or perhaps on horseback, the drones and wails and screams of the ghosts and whigmaleeries would ambush the weary and tired traveller, and render him a quivering wreck. The stories of these well oiled locals seemed to grow with the telling, and soon this stone was the talk of the towns in the district. The reputation of the locals may have weakened, but the reputation of the stone seemed to grow! It became a fearful area, and not one for the children, or women, or sensible people to pass, especially at night. What those witches would do to an unsuspecting person was anybody's guess!

In fact, we now know that the strange noises which came from this 'Bogle' stone, were the noises of the wind whistling through the cracks and crevasses of the broken rock. Mind you, there is no knowing what these sounds would have done to the minds of any well inebriated rough Portonians on their way home after a hard day's heavy work in the busy shipyards, and a night on the town afterwards.

We seem to be easily influenced and affected by some things which happen in our lives, and we let false impressions take root against all common sense which should be quite obvious. Some things don't change even with the passage of time. Something of the spirit of the Boglestone lives on in all of us! Sad, isn't it?