Ghosts
Whether or not you believe in ghosts, there's no denying the never-ending reports of sightings. Well, here's one more.
About 15 years ago, I lived in a small ranch house in a quiet Midwestern town. The kind of place where most people still don't lock their doors at night. Soon after my wife and I moved in, I lay in bed one night, tossing and turning with my insomnia.
Suddenly, I was startled to see what looked like a young man standing in the doorway, watching me. But once I jumped out of bed to see what was going on, he vanished. This happened several times, with me doing a lot of reading about ghosts in between the appearances. One night, I told the figure it was OK to watch me. However, he was warned to do no harm. The rest is history.
On many a night I saw him watching me as I studied him. A trim figure in what looked like Civil War era clothing. He could have been a Yankee. He could have been a Rebel. I never asked. He never told.
I kept my secret to myself while we lived there. Eventually we moved away and I forgot about my nighttime friend.
One day, as I was car-pooling my son and some of his friends I overheard my son talking about the ghost in our former home. He described him to a T. Now I knew for sure that I wasn't hallucinating, but had in fact saw a ghost. A friendly one at that.
Ghost expert Alan Dundes says that ghosts are spirits of dead people that visit the living. Most ghosts resemble a living form, with many of them transparent or shadowy. (Mine was somewhat transparent.) According to Dundes, many ghosts are nonviolent and the ones that are violent are thought to be people who were murdered or otherwise harmed by family or friends.
"Ghosts play an important role in some religions," Dundes wrote. "Many American Indians and tribespeople in Africa and the Pacific Islands believe in spirits that influence the living world. They perform rites to please the spirits in order to assure success in daily life. Many peoples greatly fear the dead and observe special funeral customs to make sure that ghosts do not return to haunt them."
To read more about ghosts, check out the multitude of Web sites on the Internet, including the following, which I found at www.wwwriot.com.
This site -- http://www.angelfire.com/biz2/succubus/ -- is good because it doesn't try to sell you anything or solicit donations. It's pure supernatural entertainment.
"Where others might think you've gone mad when you try to tell them about your experiences, we provide a place for you to share them without judgment, or fear. You can also read the experiences of others, check out some interesting photos and EVPs! Who knows, maybe this place can shed some light on questions you might have."
For some ghostly road-trip nightmares, check out http://www.hauntedusa.com/ which lists haunted hotels, schools, restaurants around the country that are open to the public. I checked out the reported hauntings in Arkansas, and here's some of what I found:
Eureka Springs, Ark., Crescent Hotel, Room 218 is haunted by a Irish Ghost named Michael is supposed to haunt this Hotel.
Gurdon, Ark., Railroad Tracks, a man carrying a lantern haunts the railroad tracks outside of Gurdon. Many people claim to have seen the light on the train tracks.
Jerome, Ark, The Grand Motel, This motel was once a insane asylum it has had many Paranormal Events reported from the lights turning on with no electricity.
If you want to read tons of ghost stories submitted by readers, log onto http://ghoststalker.topcities.com/ where you can read to your heart's desire, including this little tidbit:
"As told by my great aunt who passed on at age 103, 4 years ago. When I was a young girl age 7 growing up in Southern Mexico, my father owned a house where the property took up an entire block. Across the street was a giant Spanish Mission that had once been used by the Spaniards to Christianize the native Indians there. The year was 1900. I was out in the front of my house playing, when I noticed a lady dress in black crossing the courtyard of the church. Her skirt was long and black. What a curious thing I thought, as the lady seemed to be gliding and not walking! Then I looked down at her feet, but she had none. I was compelled to follow her. I followed the lady in black all the way across the church courtyard until she reached the old cemetery that stood behind the mission. I hide behind a wall watching her as she made her way into the center of the cemetery. The lady in black sadly stood there for a very brief moment, and then she vanished!"You can find lots and lots of ghost stories by searching for "ghost" at www.wwwriot.com. Check 'em out - if you dare.
If you have your own favorite ghostly Web site or book, why not tell us where to find it and why you like it so much?