SSome will argue that there is no such thing as ghosts. I understand that these people may feel terrified by the thought of ghosts or banshees roaming our world. Or some may simply assume that ghosts are a collection of silly fictional myths that our species has invented for the fun fairy tales that have been told over the past centuries. However, “seeing is believing” and if I had never seen the things I have seen in my life, I might have questioned their existence as well.
My first real experience with a poltergeist was when I was about five years elderly. It was overdue at night and I was woken up by a sound coming from the dining room. I heard the chairs at the dining table scraping roughly across the tiled floor. When I finally realized I wasn't dreaming, I was terrified. A few seconds passed and the chairs suddenly stopped moving. Then something most terrifying happened. I heard the unearthly voice of a woman calling me. The voice sounded like it was coming from the kitchen adjacent to the dining room. I don't remember everything she said, but I'm pretty sure she just kept saying my name over and over again. The hardest thing I had to do was get out of bed and run like mad down the pitch-black hallway to my mother's bedroom. Finally, when the paralysis wore off, I did exactly that. I remember tripping over the laundry basket as I snuck into my mother's bed. I didn't want to wake her up and be sent back to her room. She woke up immediately as I crawled into her arms. She told me it was just a nightmare and to go back to my room. She had to turn on the bedroom delicate and take me to bed. Of course, I couldn't sleep for a long time that night, even with my twin sister sleeping in the room. I remember having to stare at our Dr. lamp. Seuss to feel comfortable. Every time I glanced at the bedroom door, I trembled intensely. I didn't dare explore the kitchen or dining room until the next morning.
Of course, everyone laughed at me the next day when I explained exactly what happened. My older brother and dad even kept joking about the “ghost chair” (which was the only unassigned chair when the five of us ate at the table). They joked and demanded that my mother prepare a plate of ghost food. I kept thinking that one day they would see.
That day wasn't too far away, at least for my brother and sister. A few years later, on a stormy early evening, the three of us were alone in the house. By that time, our brother was elderly enough to care for us, but he was too immature to provide us with proper companionship. He kept teasing us about ghosts. “Ghostbusters” had just hit theaters, so of course everyone still had it fresh in their minds. On one occasion he even created, as he led us to believe, a PK meter that would indicate whether there were any ghosts nearby. The little stick on the home's PK meter moved sporadically, telling us that this house was haunted and full of ghosts. But on this occasion, he decided to tell us scary stories instead. With lightning, thunderous thunder, the disappearance of our parents, and my brother's wickedness, we became two very scared little girls. My brother finally came to his senses and started comforting us. He kept trying to assure us that ghosts were just appearances. Then he said these words that I will never forget… “There is no such thing as ghosts; If they existed, they would show us a sign.” BOOM! Immediately after those words came out of my brother's mouth, all the lights went out. They finally came back into the game a few seconds later. Since then, my brother has never teased us about ghosts.
This incident may not sound scary, but as a child I felt like I was living in a horror movie. My next experience may be the scariest. I was about eighteen or nineteen years elderly. My sister and I took a drive to Siesta Key in Sarasota. The sun was setting and we decided that before we went home for the day we should drive around the fancy Key subdivision to gawk at all the nice mansions. We came across a vacant lot, which is unusual because it was a decent size and right on the canal. All the other lots in the area were huge houses, one right after the other. It was so strange to see such a immense waste of space that was so valuable. My sister wanted me to pull over to the curb so we could walk around and explore. She said, “Let’s pretend we own this lot and build a big mansion.” As we walked through the palm trees further into the parking lot, a freezing coldness suddenly came over us, and the sky immediately turned gray. My worried sister said, “We have to get out of here now!” She thought she was being intuitive and had been shown a sign. She imagined that something bad would happen to us if we stayed there. She even said, “I think someone lives here like a bum or a lunatic.” “No, everything is fine. Everything is fine.” I replied uncertainly; although I was beginning to sense some uncertainty about staying in this parking lot. She said, “Well, I'm going back to the car.” I quickly followed her, thinking to myself, “I'm brave, but not brave enough to be here alone.”
We drove into the neighborhood to finish our little adventure in search of our favorite residence to drool over. It was officially nighttime now, so we agreed to head out. While trying to find our way out of the Key, we accidentally stumbled upon our empty lot. I pulled the car forward so we could take another look. Since it was gloomy outside, we could see the lights from another house on the opposite side of the canal shining through the trees.
My sister said, “Oh, look! You can see through those people's windows.” We were both looking in the same place and then it happened. A figure of a man or a creature appeared in front of us, about twenty, thirty feet from the car. It looked like it was looking at us with evil intent. The strange thing was that the shadow had no face. It was completely see-through. “Do you see what I see?” my sister mumbled. I said, “Yes.” I don't think I've ever run away from somewhere so rapid as I did that day. We were scared, but we had a good laugh on the way home.
I'd never felt truly threatened by a ghost before; they'd just made themselves known before. This one was different. He made it very clear that he didn't want us on his territory. I imagine he had to try to chase away any other unwanted visitors; after all, this was the only empty lot in the entire neighborhood.
My only other evidential ghost encounter was about two years ago. Late one night I was sitting in the driveway and trying to contact my spirit guide, whom I call Sunbeam. Spirit guides are believed to be predestined spirits who support guide us (subconsciously) throughout life, similar to the belief in guardian angels who protect us. When I communicate with Sunbeam, I cannot physically see her or hear her voice. I just talk to her like I'm saying a prayer out thunderous. As I sat there wandering, I suddenly noticed to my left a glowing apparition of a light-skinned woman with long blonde wavy hair floating down the street about three feet above the ground. She wore a tender blue and white Renaissance-style dress and some kind of hat or veil. As soon as we made eye contact, she disappeared from my sight. I assumed I saw my spirit guide, but I didn't have the comforting feeling I often felt when communicating with her. Besides, it's not how I imagined her. If anything, I thought that if she decided to show herself to me, she would look like a ball of energy. Sometimes I believe that spirit guides do not prefer to appear to us because they do not want to prove themselves to us. Then I realized I had just seen a ghost.
My theory on ghosts and lost souls is that they are deceased people who are somehow stuck in a parallel dimension between Earth and the Afterlife. I don't think everyone becomes a ghost after they die. Only those who don't want to face the reality of dying or those who feel they don't want to leave with any unresolved issues are the ones who get trapped in this realm. The amount of time a ghost stays around varies from person to person. Some can be ghosts for centuries or longer, others can be ghosts for a few weeks. It's not uncommon for someone to stay around as a ghost for a while after they die before they cross over to the other side and “head towards the light.” Some may be confused or in denial and need additional guidance or confirmation of their death. Once they accept their death, they should be able to return Home.
If you ever meet a lost soul, it is essential to tell them that they are dead and assure them that everything will be fine as long as they trust in life and have faith. No matter what religion they were, or if they were not religious at all, they all still go to the Afterlife, which is our true home. Remember that they cannot physically harm you. Most are just depressed and have no intention of hurting anyone.
Ghost encounters can be very overwhelming. Many people claim that they felt an eerie and cool presence during the meeting. I suggest that the feeling we feel is not because ghosts are risky or evil, but probably because we sympathize with their pain.
-Lori Ann Alvarez
