New life after death?

This has happened quite a few times in our family.

Agree with this concept. My Mum died in March 2008. By March 2010 we had 4 new babies in the family - 4 new greatgrandchildren for her. Since then. another 2 have arrived and 1 more is expected. My niece summed up how we all felt when she said 'Gran may be up there watching over us, but she still can't resist meddling!' In choosing names for the babies, Mum's and Dad's have been included for 4 of their GC's and 5 GGC's.

I have never thought of it like that, but yes in our family we had a population explosion after my father died eight years ago. He was a grandfather of eight and great grandfather to two, since he died there have been ten new great grandchildren and another on the way. In one year alone seven great grandchildren arrived.
My six year old GD (the oldest of the ten grandchildren born after dad passed) sometimes asks about my father and recently said to me that he would have liked to have met her. I am sure he would have too!

hmmmm... So the world's population has grown to 7 billion because...?

I discovered my greatgrandfather had 13 children.....looks like we contributed

My Dad used to say that we achieve immortality through our children. He had no time for the religious concept of life after death.

Anyway, I think of him every day, so he lives on in our memories, and through his children and grandchildren who display some of his traits.

I had my youngest just 6 months before he died.

Six years ago I was present at birth of my granddaughter and 2 days later my mother died.

Here is a poem I wrote at the time.

Beginning

Blue and slimy my new granddaughter lies in a pool of blood.
My own child gasps and sweats and sighs.
A feeble cry brings the pink blush.
The tiny fists fight the air.
The first hug
The first tear
The first light
The first fear.
Two days later my mother falls asleep,
Abandons breathing
And leaves us.
The last hug
The last tear
The last light
The last fear.
One in, one out, they say
Seeking to cheer.
It is nature’s way
Nature’s balance.
But there are wrinkles in the new pink face,
Madness in the baby’s cry,
Fear in the helplessness
Despair in the sleeping.
An end
In a beginning

By the laws of probability, some babies will be born just after someone has died. Because two events happen around the same time, it does not prove that one causes the other. Still, if it makes you happy to believe this superstition, you are not harming anybody!

Mishap That is so lovely; my Mum died the day before my cousin's baby was born - just circumstance but your poem sums it all up.

That poem is amazing.

Mishap a very moving poem. It tugs at my heartstrings.

Cried Mishap very moving

My niece was born and my grandmother died the same night.

Right... Sorry believers but you are just so wrong.
The chance of someone dying and another person being born on the same day or very close to one another
is the same as the probability of two people sharing the same birthday or having birthdays which are very close*.

Well the maths are by not simple but the answers are surprising...
to sum it up:

To have a greater than 50% chance ( ie more likely than unlikely) that

TWO people in a group share exactly the same date
you only need a group of 23 people
( for "group" read "family circle")

If the dates have a leeway of FOUR days
you only need a group of NINE people!

See the Wikipedia page on " The Birthday Problem"

Here (from that page) some strange "spooky" coincidences

73 Actors have won best male Oscar in that 73 men
there are 6 pairs with the exact same birthday!

61 people have won Oscar for Best Director
with 5 pairs sharing an exact date!

It's got nothing do with souls is the laws of probability.

*( this has intrigued us in the South London bunker as myslef and Doting Grandma have birthdays just 3 days apart and when we first met we went "oooh spooky what are the chances of etc etc" and being us we went and found out)

What about twins then?

Also what about the parts of the world where the population is falling?

Like where?

City state of Singapore ...they've appparently been encouraging people to move there

There is also the possibility that a population explosion after a death in the family ( about 9 months after) could be due to people being more loving and comforting with each other as a result.

But is there actually a population explosion ...as in more babies being born??

or is it that more babies survive and more adults are living longer??

Anyway...going back to OP ...I think I agree with dcmg

I hear we get to 7 billion soon....

Where is the population falling?
there was a superb prog by David Attenborough on this week on BBC4 about world population - it was a one off documentary that the BBC tucked away (rumours have it that the BBc regard Attenborough's views on optimum population a bit too non PC) but that is going off topic
In the progr is was mentioned that three major countries which have falling populations are Japan Germany and Russia

Oh yes!
My paternal grandfather died just FOUR weeks before I was born in 1958 .... He was 67...
In 1958 average UK male life expectancy was...
oooooh 67.5!
shiver! that is spooky!
And you know what? I resemble my father! ( a rather dashing chap actually) who in turn resembled HIS father... (shiver)

And know what?
My mum said ( she generally "dissapproved" of my paternal grandfather) that I had some of the worse traits of my grandad... oooh spooky

Sorry to put it this way I really am.... but...
Sorry girls - if it makes you feel better go ahead - but this" one in one out" thing just don't wash

DCMG - this thread clearly isn't making you happy so may I suggest, with all due respect, that you leave us 'girls' to be sentimental about this issue if we choose. I don't think we need to be patronised nor bombarded with ostensibly scientific evidence, statistics and sarcasm. Now be a good boy and let the grans get on with their conversation.