Thanks for your reply my sister. I think that they Spanish people simply mean that once one is dead they are unable to do one any ill as we the living often do without giving it a thought. What about ghosts? Aren't those the dead who literally stay around and don't want to go away?

You are so right - many living do ill without a thought. I would say, yes, on occasion some do stick around. But, only in my experience, I would say that it isn't as often as we think. I do know that they frequently visit and perhaps move things, make noises, etc. I've found in my own practice with helping others that if the activity seems infrequent, it is often a visitation. If I go to a home that there is lots going on everyday and people seem uneasy or afraid, I am more likely to believe there is an uncrossed one lingering around.