By: HONOR@Clarinda.Heartland.net
I HAVE A COUPLE OF STORYS FOR YOU. I
AND A FRIEND USE TO WORK AT THE SAME PLACE.IT WAS AN
OLD COUNTY HOME FOR THE MENTALLY ILL.
ITWAS BUILT IN 1918.WHAT HAPPENED TO ME WAS
I WORKED THE MIDNIGHT TO EIGHT SHIFT THERE.THE LIGHTS STARTED
TO FLICKER ON AND OFF THERE WAS NO
RAIN STORMS IN THE AREA TO COUNT FOR THIS.I
HAD BEEN TOLD A STORY OF A GHOST
LADY SEEN ROMEING AROUND.WELL ANY WAY I&
SAID LETS SEE WHAT ELSE
YOU; CAN DO. THE LIGHTS WENT
OFF IN THE MENS DORM AND BATH
ROOM.THEY WERE YELLING FOR HELP.I WENT IN
AND TRYED THE LIGHT SWITCH IT
DIDNT WORK . I CHECK THE FUSE BOX . THE
ONLY ONE THAT WAS OFF WAS THE
NUMBER NINE SWITCH. WHICH WAS FOR
THE MENS DORM.DOES ANYBOBY OUT
THINK THAT WAS A GHOST.NOW FOR MY
FREINDS STORY HIS NAME IS JIM HE
WAS AN HOUR AWAY FROM GETING OF
WORK ON THE LATE SHIFT.HE WENT
TO GE A BUCKET OF WATER TO
CLEAN UP A MESS WITH. HE
TRYED TO OPEN TH HALL CLOSET DOOR.IT
WOULD NOT OPEN HE SAID HE HEARD
A WOMENS VOICE SAYING JUST A
MINUTE PLEASE.HE TRYED THE DOOR LATER. THERE
WAS NO ONE IN THERE.HE ASKED THE
TWO LADY COOKES IF THEY HAD BEEN IN
THE CLOSET FOR WATER THEY SAID NO
THEY BOTH HAD BEEN IN THE KITCHEN
AT THAT TIME.THIS ALL TOOK PLACED
IN 1997. WHAT DO YOU THINK IT
WAS THANKS!
The Ghostly Old Lady
By: oldhippie@mpdr0.chicago.il.ameritech.net
When I was about 10 years old, I went to day camp. And every month we
would go camping. Well one time we went there was a little island in the
middle of a river, and there was a bridge to get on it.
Well, me and 5 other kids decided to go on the island. So we started to
go across and I was in front with no flashlight. And when we got there
i saw a little burned down house. And I was the only one to go there
besides a 9 years old kid. When we got to the house everything in sight
was burnt. Then I saw a pair of old shoes. I got closer, then I heard
a rocking chair going back and forth. When I turned around I saw a old
lady staring at me. I kind of stood there for a second then I started to
walk away. Then the old lady got up and followed me and my friend. We
started to run away. When we got to the bridge we told everyone to run
and they did, like little chickens that they were. I turned around and
the old lady was gone. When we got to camp my friends asked what we did
and we told them what we saw. They didn't believe us until it started
to smell like smoke. Like a house was burning down. All I saw that
night in my dreams was a house burning down and I heard a old lady
screaming. My friend that was with me died of cancer three years after
that happened. I will never forget that camp out.
The Flicker-
By: SiLkK-e-SmOoTh@webtv.net
Hello. I am 14 y.o., well balanced girl. I was sitting here at home,
talking to my mom, who was upstairs. As I got up to go take my clothes
out of the washer, the lights started to flicker. It wasn't storming, or
any signs of storming. I then opened up the fuse box, and flipped the
downstairs lights off...to my surprise, that one flickering light stayed
on..I cursed and QUICKLY rain upstairs, w/my mom. About an hour later, I
came back down, and flipped the switch back on...the flickering light
went off, and the light switch was flipped to the on position....still.
Nightwalk-
Sometimes before I get ready to go to bed, I'll go downstairs to get a
snack. This particular time I was walking down, I thought I heard
something. I payed it no attention. (My mom works nights, so no one was
here) As I was making my way back up the stairs, I felt an evil presence
come over me, and I almost fell down the stairs. The stairs are made of
hard, thick wood. There are about 17 stairs, and to meet the end is a
hard, concrete floor. There's no doubt in my mind, if I wouldn't have
been holding onto the railing, I wouldn't be here today.
My Grandfather's Death Pulled our family together-
My grandfather died about 3 years ago, and I took it the hardest out of
everyone. As I was almost asleep in my bedroom, I felt a golden presence
over me, telling me everything is going to be o.k..it was telling me to
be strong, b/c everyone needed me to be at that time. I told my mom of
this, and she didn't believe me. I told my cousin, and she witnessed
that she hears his footsteps and feels his presence over her. His death
pulled our family closer, but it's bad that it had to be that way. I
live in a dangerous neighborhood, and I feel that he's ALWAYS watching
over me...I feel it now..
The Ghost Who Liked Me
By: MustyMummy@aol.com
One evening my boyfriend and I decided to take a stroll at a historical site
near my apartment. It was about 10:15, really windy, and chilly out. Usually
many people are out at the island, but that night was very quiet and hardly
any people walking around.
We walked around for a bit and walked with our arms crossed, bearing with
the cold wind gusting at us, since we were near the ocean. As we walked near
the old fort on the island, which dates back to the Revolutionary period, the
wind came on even stronger. I had my long hair out and it began to fly above
my head. I laughed thinking I looked like a witch . Suddenly, the cold wind
became WARM , the wind stopped abruptly, and my hair stood up still in the
air for about 5 seconds!!!!!!! Then my hair began to slowly come down to my
back, but soon I started to feel a tingling feeling on my scalp and hair, as
if someone was playing with it!!!! I was giggling telling my boyfriend it
felt like someone was playing with my hair and that it was tickling me. I
thought nothing of that incident until we walked further...
As we walked closer to the exit of the island, I now strongly felt the
presence of the male spirit next to me. My heart raced and I felt scared now.
It gave me the impression that he was a young, Revolutionary soldier who was
curious about me and was trying to get my attention (I think he was
fascinated by my hair). My boyfriend was at my side and I told him" There is
a spirit next to me". He said he could feel it also, but chose to ignore it.
I could even start to hear the pitter patter of feet brushing through the
grass at my side, while were were walking on the concrete. It seemed to be
almost jogging as to keep up with us and almost act sort of playful. Finally
I had enough and told my boyfriend "Let's switch sides!". We did and about
10 seconds later it came back to my side again!!! I got so scared I ran and
my boyfriend caught up with me and grabbed my hand. My boyfriend, who I
believe is psychic, said he told the spirit, telepathically, to leave and let
us be. Amazingly, the presence was gone, and I felt relief. Later on in bed I
thought about the whole thing.I got this terrible feeling that it was sad
that it scared me and that it really meant no harm to me. I think if I had
just relaxed instead of being scared, I would have been able to learn more
about him. I think he liked me and that maybe I had the "key" to helping him
perhaps?? I have been up there several times since, and have not felt the
soldier's presence since........
State Park
By: crshoultz@hotmail.com
Here is my story. I have always been skeptical of the supernatural. I have
always had a difficult time believing in things I could not see, or
comprehend.
Last week I went camping with some friends at a state park. This is an
historic state park because it is located where one of the earliest
settlements in my home state was built. The night we were camping a severe
thunderstorm came through the area and chased almost all of the other
campers away, so it was a very secluded area. The friends that I was
camping with all went to bed at about 2:30, but I always have a hard time
sleeping so I decided to stay up for a while and see if I could get the fire
going again that the storm had put out. I messed around for about 45
minutes trying to get the wet wood to start and failed miserably. Degected
I sat back in my lawn chair and thought, "what am I supposed to do now, I'm
bored out of my mind and not the least bit tired." I had been sitting there
for about 5 minutes when I heard a commotion behind me, a
clip-clop-clip-clop, the sound a horse makes when it is walking. I thought
to myself, "who is riding a horse at this time of day." I turned around and
about 25 yards from me was a figure, leading a horse down the road. I was
confused and bewildered and then about 5 seconds later it dissolved into
nothingness. I didn't feel scared, or threatened, I was just confused and
impressed by what I had just seen. The figure and the horse were both solid
forms with a grey-ish white illumination to them. They had no color, the
way a person looks when illuminated by a full moon. But because of the
storm earlier in the night, there was no moon. The sky was completely
clouded over. I don't feel that I saw a wondering spirit, I just feel that
somehow I got the chance to see through a window to the past, or perhaps
view energy that was left over from 150 years ago.
Was It a Ghost or My Imagination?
By: cbrown@transpeg.com
Well this happened to me a long time ago
although the situation goes through my mind allot,well when I was younger my
relatives that would stay with us would start to tell these stories about
seeing an old women by the fire place and the restroom. This women would
just stare at them and then go away. My mom would say that it was our old
neibors mother that use to own our home before we did, anyhow one day I was
getting ready to go out somewhere and my sister was also getting ready to go out
herself and she was trying on different types of outfits this was in the 80's so
trench coats and black captain like hats were in and I had seen her wear this
outfit before, anyway I wasgetting ready in the bathroom and our bathroom
medicine cabinet use to face the dining room so here I am brushing my teeth and I
look up in the mirror and I saw a person walk right through the living room
into the dining area wearing a black hat and a black trench coat and what I saw
walk very slowly I thought nothing of it because I thought it was my sister and
I shouted out to her/it "your going to wear that again?" and I laughed after I
was done doingwhat I was doing I walked up to my mom and said where's
Sammy? My mom looked at me all surprised and said she left a long time ago..I
was stunned!!!!Later that day I saw my sister and she was
wearing a total different outfit so it wasn't her. I still wonder what that
was...The strange thing is years later I visited my dad and he and I
started talking and somehow the conversation came up about my mom's house he
said "Ya that house is something else" and he went on about one day he was
watching football and something kicked the couch real hard, and about the
house being a very old house and in the 1800's there use ou be a man and his son
living there and one day they went fishing and somehow the boat tipped over and
the man and son drowned.....So did I see him? or was it my
imagination?
My Grandfather's Bible?
By: psaylor@netcarrier.com
I am an identical twin, and often because of this, most people ask us if we share experiences,
"You know,"they say, "like on television". My answer is always the same:
sometimes. It's true that twins, on occasion, may share certain
emotions even though they may be miles apart. This is what my brother and I have
known for years. But everything changed when my brother and his wife and two
children moved into my late grandfather's home in Norristown, PA. The history of the house is
nothing spectacular. The only event of any importance occurred when my
grandfather, who had been diagnosed with colon cancer in 1987 decided
to spend his final days at home before the cancer took him. He died in a
hospital bed which had been set up in the living room of his house later that
year. And from that point forward, various family members have lived in the
house without any strange occurrences, or "bumps in the night". Until my brother
Peter and his family moved in. The first week in their new
home, my brother was excited as ever about living in such a large house
compared to the meager apartment he and his family had been sharing for the past
two years. Given the history of the house (i.e.: my grandfather dying there),
didn't bother him one bit, since he was the last person who believed in such
tales. Then, about two months after moving in, he decided to clean out the
basement to make room for his music equipment (he is a part time musician) and a
new washer and dryer my father had bought them as a Christmas present. While
digging through the accumulated junk of half a century, he happened upon a small
Bible. Inside the front cover was an inscription denoting the bible as a gift to
my grandfather from my great grandmother in 1906. He took it up stairs and laid
it out on one of the coffee tables so that other family member visiting could
see it when they visited. Remember that I had yet to hear of this find since it
had only occurred that day, but that night, I had one of the most terrifying
nightmares I could remember. I dreamt I was standing on the landing overlooking
the living room of my brother's house in Norristown, PA, but something was
wrong. Having visited the house many times in the past, I vividly remember the
layout of how it used to look when I was a child. But in my dream, I remember
seeing an end table which was never there before, on which a book was placed. I
was drawn to it for some reason. I slowly descended the stairs, even now
recalling how hollow my footsteps sounded on the hard wood floor as I made my
way towards the end table. As I got there, I looked down and saw that it was
(surprise!), small bible. Upon opening it, I saw there was an inscription made
out to my brother from our father. This is where things got really spooky. I
remember hearing my brother's voice behind me say: "This is mine which dad gave
me. Please give it back." I was too terrified to turn around, because even
though it sounded like my brother, there was something "otherworldly"
about the whole thing. I finally succumbed to curiosity and turned around. This
was (of course!) when I woke up screaming something, I don't remember what. I
startled my wife who was then yelling at me to: "keep it down! The neighbors
will think we're fighting or something!". Later that morning, I spoke to
Peter to tell him the strange dream I had, and that's when he told me about what
he had found, and who it really belonged too. I was startled beyond words. I
told him I would be down in about an hour (I live in Perkasie, PA approximately
an hour north of Norristown) to see the book. "Too late," he said. "Why?" I
asked. "It's gone," he replied. The conversation went on from
there about how he had placed it on the end table, an end table he they had just
picked up at a yard sale that day, but when he woke up, it was gone. I asked if
his wife could have taken it, but he said that was impossible. They had flown
back to Texas two days earlier to visit her folks and took the kids with her for
the short vacation. After going round and round about what could have happened
to it, as well as the strange dream I had and what the voice had said to me, in
the end we just didn't know what to say. I guess it was one of those things that
will never really be explained. Two weeks later, his wife and
two children arrived back home and were in the process of unpacking when she
went down to the basement to see how the cleanup had gone. Thatwhen she asked him
about the small bible. "What
bible?" he asked his wife. "Oh, the one in the basement near the keyboard you
put there." Looking confused I'm sure, my brother ran down to the basement and
sure enough, there it was on the floor, right where he had originally found it.
Picking it up, he read the inside cover again. Only this time, there was no
inscription at all. Did he imagine the writing to
begin with? Did my weird dream that night have anything to do with it
"disappearing" again? I don't know. Neither does Peter. But one thing's for
sure: my grandfather does.
The Last Goodbye
By: tigeriz@hawaii.rr.com
Although, I have not had alot of personal contact with my father's side
of the family due to my parent's divorce, I always felt loved and accepted by
them. I had only been out to see them in Kansas maybe three times since 1975
because the trip between there and Hawaii is too expensive. In 1993, I was going
to visit my father since I finally saved enough money to do so. Just before I
walked out of the door of my apartment, my cousin called and said that I should
pack something in black because they didn't think that my grandfather would
survive much longer (he had been in and out of the hospital in the last few
years of his life.). Surprised at the coincidence of the timing (me visiting
just before he passes on)I said that I had and that I hoped that grandpa would
hang on long enough for me to say goodbye. My cousin sounded doubtful but hoped
the same. Then we hung up. When I got to my father's house (which was actually
my grandparents home), it was late in the afternoon. Since everyone either lived
in the same town or the one next to it, they had come over to greet me and talk
a bit, then left. My father asked if I wanted to sleep in my grandparent's room.
I told him that I didn't want to. It felt like they were still in there even
though my grandmother had passed on a few years ago and grandpa was in the
nursing home with her even before she passed on. My father accepted my response
and so I slept on the living room couch. The next day, my cousins were in and out
visiting me. At one point I noticed my aunt on the phone talking in a low voice.
I looked at my dad and I asked him what was up. He told me that grandpa died
yesterday. I asked him why didn't he tell me yesterday. He said that I just got
there after 14 hours of plane rides, transfers and one delay and thought that
since I was tired, he didn't want to stress me out. I was disappointed because I
really wanted to give my goodbyes. I found out that he had passed on at the same
time I had landed in Kansas. He asked me if I wanted to go view the body and I
said that I did. When I got to see him, I didn't feel that was him so I felt
that I didn't get in a proper good-bye. The next day was the funeral. I spent
the rest of the day playing with younger cousins and catching up with the older
ones. That evening at about 9:30pm, my father said he was tired and was going to
bed. I told him that I was going to stay up and watch TV. So I watched him get
up, go to the front door which was only 6 inches away from the foot of the couch
that was I lying on, locked the screen door, then closed the main door, lock the
door knob and latched the hook latch that was about eye level on the door. We
said our good nights and he went to bed. I was lying on the couch watching TV,
when I felt a cool breeze go past me, brushing my left ear. Then the main door
that I had seen my father lock and latch, OPENED up, paused and closed firmly. I
then said "Good-bye, Grandpa." I was so confident that that was grandpa that I
didn't even feel the need to check the door. The next morning, I woke up when I
heard my father walk into the living room. We said our good mornings as I watched
him unlock then unlatch the hook to the main door as well as the screen door and
go outside to get the morning paper. When he came back in he noticed me still
staring at the door. He asked me what I was staring at and I told him what
happened last night. He smiled and said that he's glad that we got to say our
good byes.
I Have Seen Your " Imp "
By: Melli-K@webtv.net
I had an experience with an entity you described as an " imp." It was
at a local graveyard I was investigating with a few friends of mine.
The graveyard is a fairly small one with a stone wall all around and a
small caretakers shed about 15 to 20 feet outside the fence. I had been
there before and had seen the entity. It was the size of a medium dog
and ran on all fours. It is really hard to put a shape to it. Sort of
a cross between an o'possum and a person. ( if that makes any sense! )
When my friends and I got there, I didn't tell them what to look
for or where to look. About five minutes after we got there one person
pointed it out to me. I asked him what he thought it looked like. He
said, " I can't describe it. " The funny thing is with this thing, it
tries to jump the fence in to the graveyard. It moves between the shed
and the wall closest to the shed. It makes a running start and jumps as
if it is going to clear the fence. It looks like it hits some kind of
barrier and drops back on the ground. It does not do the same thing all
the time. Most of the time it just moves back and forth between the
wall and the fence.
I had observed this thing three times before this particular
outing. The people that were with me were focusing on it and not the
grave yard which was putting an awesome light show that night. I said
to them, " Don't pay any attention to that stupid thing. It's annoying
and it never does anything else." Dave, this thing stopped and looked
straight at us. It then went behind the care takers shed. Needless to
say, the people that were with me were scared to death. Then, as I
turned to say something to them, this thing started to bang very loudly
on the tin roof of the building. I turned toward the building and said,
" That is very impressive and it must take an awful lot of energy to do.
If you'll stop, we will leave." It immediatley stopped. This was too
much for me. I started to walk toward the shed. As I got to a place
where I could see behind the shed, I saw that it was standing upright.
At that moment it hit me. It was like a huge static shock all over my
body and it knocked me back a few steps. It also cracked loud enough
for the people behind me to hear it.
I guess I made it mad because I lied to it. Instead of leaving, I
went closer. I went back to the same graveyard several weeks later with
my cousin and as soon as we got out of the car and approached the wall,
it started banging on the roof again. It clearly does not like me.
This is one of the wierdest things I have ever experienced. This
critter holds a grudge. I haven't been back for a while. My schedule
hasn't allowed it. I really want to take someone else along because I
want a witness if something else happens. No one that went the first
time will go back with me.
I am very interested in hooking up with other people who are
interested in the same things. I have been used by a friend to 'feel'
out places to take pictures. I seem to be very sensitive to this sort
of thing. I have been able to accurately tell people about objects by
touching them. The few times I did this, however, I scared myself so
badly I never tried again. I might be interested in exploring this,
too. I would love to talk to someone who can do this and could help me
sort out my feelings on it.
You have a wonderful site!! Hope to hear from you. I live in
Pennsylvania, very close to the Maryland border. I also know of some
pretty active graveyards a few other places. The first one I ever went
to made me a believer forever.
My Daughter's Angel?
By: mccoy@netins.net
We have lived in this house but
just 2 years and have several occasions of unexplainable happenings. On
two seperate occurances when she was alone she has heard or seen a
presence. Here are the two seperate stories. It was summertime in the early afternoon
I was at work, my husband was golfing and my son was at his grandparents my
daughter (Dakota) was in the house with her aunt Vera. Vera was in the spare bedroom
at the end of the hall writing a letter and Dakota was in her room located next
to the spare bed Dakota was in the middle of cleaning out her desk
when she was interupted by an unknown male voice. The voice was deep,clear
and loud. It said...Are you ok Koty? ( Koty is her
nickname) She turned around to and there was no one in the room with her, the door was still
closed. Koty started to write small notes to Vera telling her of what just
happened and sliding them under Vera's door. Vera came out and assured
Dakota that there was no one at home but them and the t.v. was off, the radio
was off and it would be ok. I still have the little notes she wrote to
Vera,Vera told me all of this when Dakota was not around so she had no idea I
already knew. Dakota is 8 years old and never had an active
imagination or pretend playmate It took Koty several weeks before
she could bring herself to talk about it and tell me. It was the 4th of July, one month
after the bedroom voice ordeal when my daughter and I are riding back to our home together
when she tells me this... Mom, do
you believe in angels, and can men be angels? I was
curious about the question and she told me what
happened. She said she was in the bathroom brushing her teeth when a man
appeared behind her in the doorway watching over her he then turned and moved down
the hallway and vanished.She had never seen him before and hasn't seen
him since.
It Happens All the Time
By: leetiner@flash.net
When I was about four or five years old, something
happened to me that I still recall pretty clearly. I was at my
grandparents house to spend the night, and it was apparently getting late
because I remember my granddaddy had already gone to bed.Grandma had just finished
giving me some cornbread in buttermilk, and I got down on the floor to play. I remember looking
toward the window that faces the road and the front yard and seeing a figure
there in the window. To me, it was my idea of what a puppet of Jesus
Christ would look like. It had brown hair, a beard, a long white "robe",
and mitten hands. It was just sitting there looking in. I looked at
Grandma, and she just said, "Don't worry, it happens all the time."
At first, I thought that maybe my granddaddy was
playing a trick, and so I ran into his room, and he was fast asleep. When
I came back into the room, I don't remember looking at the window...I was
probably too scared.Well, years went by, and I sometimes thought about
it, but I thought my daddy thought I'd dreamt it. But one day, after my
granddaddy had died, and my grandma was in a nursing home, my cousin and I were
cleaning up the old house because we were thinking of moving in together.
I had been cleaning the living room, and I mentioned to her that I always
avoided looking out that front window at night unless there were headlights
shining in. She looked at me kind of funny and her eyes got really big,
and she told me, "I saw a face there, too." We decided to leave and get
something to eat. Now a few years later, I asked her exactly what she
thought she saw, but I did not tell her what I saw. She said that
she saw a face that she thought looked like Jesus to her. Then I told
her what I had seen. That was the only time I remember seeing something,
but I remember my daddy telling me that grandma was always seeing
"things." Maybe the things she saw were really there. You just had
to be in the right frame of mind.
New Husband Haunting
By: robermom@prodigy.net
I bought my first and probably only home when I was forty. (I'm
forty-six now.) I couldn't afford much, so I look at lots of homes that
were just not in good shape, or else were in terrible neighborhoods.
One day I had to pick my daughter up after a slumber party and
accidently showed up at the wrong address--a house with the identical
street address as the house I was trying to find! (It turned outTHREE
houses shared that address, though they were each about a mile apart!)
Shortly after this incident, this same house went us for sale. I
askedthe realtor to show it to me. She said it was in a higher price
category, but remarkably, when she looked it up again, it was affordable
to me.
Grandma
By: leetiner@flash.net
I am 45 years old.When I was 14 my Grandma was in a nursing home. She had become very frail
and sickly and of course I did not realize that she was on her way
out. At this time my brother, who was six years older than myself was working swing shift,
which meant that he did not get home fromwork until after midnight We shared
the same bedroom. As for as that goes, we shared the same bed. Most
of the time I would already be asleep when he arrived from work and was hardly
aware he was even there until I awoke the next morning. One night
I awoke. Well, actually I was only partially awake and tried to open
my eyes. There standing beside my bed was Jesus Christ wearing his
white robe and looking very peaceful. I closed my eyes again and then sort
of reopened them. I was still more asleep than I was awake. Then I
saw my Grandma standing were Jesus had been only a moment before.An
amazing thing about her was that she wasn't in bad health at all, but looked
very fat and lively as I remembered her a few short years before. Before
she had went to the rest home and was still living in her own house. But
strangely she was wearing a pure white gown. She was not soiled or
blemished in any way. She was a picture of health. I, still being in
the twilight stage of sleep, closed my eyes again. Then, Realizing what I
had seen, I woke up with a start. It was only my brother standing there
getting ready for bed. I went back to sleep
and began to dream. As far as I could tell, I must have dreamed all
night about my Grandma. But I didn't dream of her as she was at that
time,lying on the nursing home bed,skin and bones, half dead, and
senile,but as she had been when I was maybe five or six years old. And all
the other characters in the dream, including myself were about eight or
nine years younger also. I dreamed about how I used to stay with
my Grandma when my mom would go shopping, My Grandma was healthy and happy
as before, and she would give me pie or cake or cookies. I dreamed about
how the whole family and my aunts, uncles, and cousins would all get together at
Grandma's house on Christmas and other occasions. The adults would
all gather around the table for a large meal, and we kids would usually have a
plate made for us and we would sit in a circle on the livingroom floor.
Those were happy days. I remember when my Grandma
was still living in her own house that she had an ashtray made from an antique
Mason Jar lid with soda pop tops stacked tightly together all the way around
it. As a small child I had tried to pull the snuggly wired together tops
from around the lid, but the builder of the ashtray had fitted them so well that
they would not budge. I was told that my dad had built that for Grandma
years before. Grandma didn't smoke, althoughcome to think of it she
did dip a little snuff. But she liked to havean ashtray or two
around the house to oblige those who did smoke. My dad is dead now and I
have since wished I'd have asked him how he fitted and wired those caps so
well. As I remember there was a wire that ran through the center of each
cap, but it was done so that even where the ends were tied together the
wire was hardly visible. Anyway, I dreamed that I
was there while he was actually making that ashtray even though I understand he
made it before I was born. I dreamed a lot of other things too, such as
Grandma scolding my cousin and me for something naughty we did
andother small events too numerous for me to remember them all in
detail after this many years have passed. Yes, it was probably
the most pleasant dream I have experienced in my life. It was a dream in
which I didn't want to awake from. I think I was still in the process of
enjoying the dream when sometime around sunrise my sister's husband came to my
bedside, gently nudged me awake and said in a quiet voice "Curtis, wake
up. Youre Grandmother died last night."