The First Indications that We Might Not be Alone

When you're living with spirits, you might think that you would know it. Maybe they would do something to let you know that you're sharing your space with them, but the thing with ghosts, especially if they are intelligent, is that they might not really want you to know that they are there.

I'm not a genius, and I'm not a paranormal expert, but I'm guessing that it goes a little like this: ghosts were once human. They likely have some of the remnants of human emotions - you know sadness, happiness, anger, fear, worry...  So, if you have ghosts in your house, chances are that if you have an intelligent (meaning interactive) haunting, they will be able to decide whether you know they are there or not.

Actually found this on the Stones River Paranormal Society FB page.
They are the ones who investigated our house - in fact, this IS our house!

Now, our haunting - which has been confirmed by paranormal investigators - is definitely intelligent. This means that they interact with us - and they definitely interact. BUT, and I'll get into this later, a certain someone that is able to communicate with them (and is not part of the paranormal team), has said that our ghosts prefer to be called spirits. 

This tells me that maybe - and please let me clarify again: I am not an expert. I only speculate - but I think think I have some pretty cool theories! - our spirits have the ability to come and go. Maybe they know that they interact, and maybe they have the... Well, the mental well-being to hang out or not.

The first signs that we weren't alone

In our case, the signs that we weren't alone came slowly. In fact, it was over a couple of years that things started to happen. Maybe we didn't really notice much, or maybe our ghosts didn't know us well enough to start exposing themselves.

So, our first indicator happened when one of my oldest daughter's friends came over. Typical smarty-tarty says,"You know, y'all ain't gonna stay here that long." Yeah, he talked just like that. 

And I was thinking - Well, who the crap are you? But I said, "Really? Why is that?"

"Cuz it's haunted," he says. Hmmm... Well, I happen to know that we are one of the most stubborn families that ever walked this beautiful planet - and I know that this kid had just sorely misjudged us.

So, I told him, "Honey - I think you have no idea who you're dealing with, because no ghost is gonna run us out."

As he left, he said, "Okay, well good luck. Y'all are gonna need it."

For my part, I was floored. I mean, we had just moved in and I guess I had never even imagined that our house might be haunted. So, like most people would, we all just blew it off and kind of went on with life.

It didn't take long...

When you're not thinking about the paranormal on a regular basis, it's easy to forget things you've been told. So, when we really did experience something FOR REAL, it was a bit of a shocker.

On this particular event, my parents were staying with us for a couple days. It was cold out, because we had spaghetti for dinner. My youngest daughter, Colleen, was sitting across from me next to my mom. We are a loud family. There are six of us with my parents, and there can be several different conversations going on simultaneously.

On this night - we were all talking about something when Colleen says, "uh mom, you know there's a tall man standing behind you, right?" Her eyes, always big, were wider than I had seen them before. She wasn't scared, exactly, but she wasn't jumping up to touch it either. 

For some reason I didn't turn around - or I should say -I don't remember turning around. I remember that the whole table fell silent for a moment before we all fired a barrage of questions at my four year old. Surprisingly, she stayed calm. 

Colleen said she wasn't scared. He was tall and she couldn't see his face. This became our "shadow man." Not that he was a legitimate shadow person; it's just that we didn't know what else to call him.

Over the next couple of years, Colleen would see him. He was usually in the hallway, and he would come from the linen closet. I never was able see him, but sometimes I would feel something... Different. 

I could never understand what people were talking about when they reported that they felt "watched," but I know how it feels when there is "someone" sitting close to me. My skin tingles, or feels cold - but it's only in one area. This guy would do that to me once in a while. Even now, this happens to me. Like if I'm sitting on the couch and my back feels cold and tingly, but the rest of my body feels fine.

Surprisingly, Colleen hasn't seen him - our "shadow man," in quite some time. I like to think he was a soul that needed help passing on and he finally found it, but I can't talk to them, so your guess is as good as mine.

He's not the only ghost we've had, though. There are plenty more. Maybe they want their stories told - sometimes I wonder if they sit and read this as I write it - or maybe they just go about doing whatever ghosts - sorry spirits - do.