UNTITLED TALES
Untitled 16
In August, 1999, my family of 4 moved into a rental home in Caryville, TN.
We were told by neighbors the home was built in 1967, and the original homeowner
committed suicide in the bathroom with a bullet to the head while sitting on the
toilet - following a state of depression that his wife did not take seriously
until too late. She was left to raise their 2 children alone.
In late August, our mother American Bobtail cat gave
birth to 4 kittens. As soon as the kittens learned
to use the litter pan, momma cat decided to make use of the basements'
hidden corners. I was walking down the basement stairs to check on the
kittens when I smelled her mess and said, "I really need to find where she is
messing and clean it up." Upon my return to the upstairs, I discovered a
light over the rec room bar had been turned on [it had been off upon my entry to
the basement] and as I approached the bar to turn off the light, I smelled cat odor
stronger than before, and there discovered momma cats hidden messes!
By
September that same year, the children were meeting new friends, and in October
our home was open to many sleepovers. In late November, while searching the
house for curtain rods to fit the 2 patio sliding doors, I walked past the hall
closet when the door opened and out fell the rod I needed. During this same
November month, my husband had been busy for days raking the rather large front
and back yards, and when finished, he brought the rake inside, leaned it against
a wall, and asked if any one of the three children might haul it to the basement
for winter storage.
Three days later the rake sat in the same spot where he had left it.
I asked the children who would take the time and energy to do as their father
had asked. Still no response. On the evening of the 3rd day,
as the children were arguing
over who among them would do this minor task - the
rake slammed to the floor. Immediately, the oldest of the trio grabbed
up the rake and put it in it's proper place in the basement.
In December, 1999, we were robbed
of our Christmas funds, and it was anybodies guess between
our two
most frequent teen visitors. Both teens stopped visiting for a
time. In early January, 2000, my husband, a bluegrass musician earned
enough money from a local small gig to buy me a much
needed affordable refurbished washing machine. One night as I was standing
alone in the laundry room washing a load of clothes, I saw a shadowy male figure
wearing a ball cap come running into the work shop room next to the laundry room
and stop at the bench, running back and forth three times.
When I returned upstairs, I asked who had come into the basement - and all said
they did not.
In
late January, 2000, one of the teen visitors [from December, 1999] had returned
upon hearing of the robbery, to profess that he was a true friend who would
never do such a thing to us. However, upon
his first nights return to sleepover, the children were all staying up
late to watch movies, and my husband and I had gone to sleep for the night.
We were awakened abruptly shortly after midnight to
the sounds of every door in the house slamming open and shut repeatedly, and
children screaming and running through our bedroom
door.
In February, 2000, one of the 2
kittens we were still holding for adoption was nestled upon my belly while I lay
on my bed watching television, and my husband was sitting on the edge of his bed
playing his guitar, when the kitten suddenly stood upright on his hinds legs
with every hair standing on end, staring at the open door - at a male figure,
dressed in a blue & red flannel shirt, blue denims, white tennis
shoes, and smiling at my husband as he played his guitar. He then
turned and as he began to walk away -
he faded.
Other
strange things have happened from the time we moved in. A month after we
moved in, the central thermostat to the heating and cooling system kept rising,
and resulted in a high bill. So I sat at the kitchen table and spoke to
our house ghost and told him that we had no choice but
to share this place, and to please take into consideration our fixed disability
income. The thermostat stopped rising.
The television and stereos
channels will turn on and off and change channels. Volume rises and falls on
certain television shows and radio stations songs. Alarm clocks fail. Our
16 year old son has seen this same male ghost - who wears the blue & red flannel
shirt, blue denims, white tennis shoes and ball cap.
I
finally got the courage to tell a neighbor about our ghost sightings. And
she tells me it is the original homeowner. I like to think of him as a
Casper the Friendly Ghost type. He has been more helpful than scary.
Although since I shared my faith in God with him we haven't
experienced him again, I've heard he was a good man. And I would
like to think he walks with God now. For I am confident
he is forgiven.
-Unsigned.