Seeing Double ~ by Lori Roberts

     You know what they say, “Everyone has a double somewhere!”  Well, I believe they are right.  I see people everywhere I go that looks like someone else.  My first memory of seeing a doppelganger was in my youth.  My dad was a doppelganger of his uncle, Knoful.  I remember seeing him at family reunions and thinking how much they resembled each other, but my dad wasn’t gray yet, so the resemblance wasn’t striking.
     Fast forward to my early twenties.  My father would stop on his way home from work at the local grocery store near my house.  His uncle also lived nearby.  As I made my way into the store, I saw who I thought to be my dad.  I even called out, “Dad!” to which Uncle Knoful turned.  Since he was the father of twelve children, he assumed I was one of his.  We both got a good laugh out of it, and I went on to tell Dad the next time I saw him.
     This happened one other time, but with my best friend. She saw Uncle Knoful dining with his wife at a local restaurant.  My best friend didn’t know him but told her husband that my dad was sitting across from them, only he wasn’t with my mom.  You can image! She called me later to tell me she saw my dad. I already knew before she finished. My parents were on a trip to Australia, so I knew who she’d seen.
     I’m sure you have similar stories or experiences. I have been doing research for a new novel I’m writing, set in the 1910-1912 Edwardian era. I was leafing through countless images and came across the story of a lady who’d survived not only the Titanic sinking, but two other disasters at sea as well. 
   

 Google Violet Jessup. She is quite the story. When I posted her picture on my history site, I started getting comments about there being a resemblance to me and some asked if this was a picture of me in character.  Of course, I didn’t see the resemblance, but out of the comments the post received, many saw something I didn’t. I share Violet’s photo aboard the Titanic, and myself as a historical character.

     I can think of several occasions throughout my life when someone approached me, thinking I was someone else. It happens to us all, I’m sure. I became interested in the idea of doppelgangers and did a bit of research after seeing an image of Nicholas Cage and his Civil War doppelganger. So, I will share a few of the ones I found. There are many! See if you agree, everyone has a twin.

Jennifer Lawrence and Zubaida Tharwat

Nicholae Grigorescu and Orlando Bloom

Ginger Rogers and Christina Aguilera

Jack Black and Paul Revere

Zora Neale Hurston and Queen Latifah

Conan O'Brien and Marshall Harvey Twitchell

unknown gentleman on the left

Maggie Gyllanhaal and Rose Wilder Lane

WWII General Douglas MacArthur and Bruce Willis

     After looking at my examples, do you agree? 

     I’ve enjoyed taking a side bar while researching. I think I’m easily distracted, which is probably why I get research for other books on my gallivanting around in history.

     I hope to have a future paranormal book (book 3 in my Lowcountry series) about something similar, only with our ancestors. I’ll keep you posted!