Posted 02 January 2012 - 03:33 PM
Death sometimes shows up as a wee folk too. Sometimes ole Grim types are more of a warning of death coming or the severing of life rather than a guy that collects your soul and takes it somewhere. Reaping and gathering up are kind of two different things. Kind of like in the fields- one guy swings a scythe, cutting down the plants, and another guy does the actual bundling up and carting off of the plants.
That may explain ghosts. If the Grim Reaper is a real critter, his job is to reap life, not necessarily take those reapings anywhere. I suppose taking the reaped soul somewhere would fall under the job jurisdiction of critters like angels, guardian spirits, totem animals, other spirit guide types. Or maybe none of those things exist, and souls just wander around till they figure out where ever is is they are supposed to go to.
Yes, I am a cynical and jaded jacknape. I try to see all three sides of the coin- do you?