Ghosts Among Us
To many of us, ghosts are a part of our daily lives, and we are
taught that they are best left alone. Those who are clergymen have various explanations for this, from a religious point of view--many saying that these are simply souls that are unable to find rest. I am not one to question anyone's beliefs, and I
also respect those who fear this sort of thing. I would say that I am
respectful of
what the world at large calls "ghosts", but both curious and afraid at the
same
time and there are times when I feel that the only way to conquer our
fears is
to face them. I have had only one direct encounter with a ghost. In my hometown
of Gloucester, I had the opportunity of exploring an old abandoned house in the countryside, by one of the roads that leads to Wiltshire. I love
exploring old ruins and abandoned residences in our general area, when
property
owners allow it, but this particular day, I was not prepared for what I
experienced.
This past June, my brother and I decided to explore an old house we
had driven by on numerous occasions. Upon entering, we found mostly dust
in the old abandoned two-story house. As we neared the stairs that led to the
second floor, we could hear a girl crying in one of the upper rooms, as if
very
sad. We both thought that it may have been one of the local farm girls who
may have been exploring the house as well, so we went upstairs, telling the girl we
heard that we were only there to look around, and to not be afraid. When
we
entered the room we heard the voice come from, we quickly left running,
and
practically tripped down the stairs on our way out. We simply saw a
"transparent" figure of a young woman, about 16 or 17 years old, wearing a
long dress, circa 1920's or so. I will never forget the girls face so full
of sadness.
A few days later, we returned to inquire what the story was from
the current property owner (note that the house is on farmland) (it
took us a
few days to get our bearings back together). The man who now owns the
land told
us that a girl had once lived there with her parents, at the turn of the
century, and was engaged to be married, but that her fiancée had taken his
own
life days before the marriage and on the supposed wedding day, she also
took her own life. It is not clear why the young man had taken his own
life, but there are
numerous rumors as to why. All I know is that I will never go back inside
that
house, but I do hope her spirit finds rest someday.
Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction, as the old saying
states, but once we experience something like this, we both feel for the
"ghost", as well as a sense of deep fear for not understanding what it is
we are
experiencing.