More Random Stories of the Paranormal That I've Heard Firsthand

(See Dec. 15, 2012 for other random stories of the paranormal that I've heard firsthand.)

At a recent Sacramento MUFON meeting a gentleman sitting next to me named Steve shared the fact that he is sure he is an abductee because he awakes in the morning with scratches and marks on his body. He spent many years in a fundamentalist Christian church and still considers himself to be born again. Whenever he has doubts about his faith, he reminds himself that he has often blocked paranormal manifestations by using the name of Jesus. The homes of abductees are often ‘haunted’ by random poltergeist manifestations. He was once using a Ouija Board with a friend. He thought she was pushing the pointer, she thought he was. When they asked a question, there was no hesitation; the pointer went straight to the answer. He finally asked, “Are you malevolent?” It shot over to “Yes.” That was the last time he used a Ouija. As I listened to his many stories, I kept wondering why, if he is a Christian, he is being abducted. The answer is that he has a ‘familiar spirit’ that he claims helps him all the time. He is not willing to let go of that presence. As long as he keeps looking to it for help, he will remain an abductee.

His lady friend Sue gets messages about earthquakes. A friend of hers was in San Francisco some years back. The friend heard a clear message in her head that said, “Get in a doorway, dear one. There is going to be an earthquake.” She did that, and the 6.7 Northridge Earthquake of 1994 hit.

Betty W. is a Catholic here in Sacramento. In 2009, she told me that one morning in the early 1930’s in Milwaukee her grandmother received a visit from her brother. She had cookies, so she poured some milk and they had a nice visit. Then he left. When the family came home that night, she said, “Uncle George was here this morning.” That night, they got a call that George had died that morning. George lived across the state, so there is no way he could have driven to Milwaukee and back and then died.

This story is just one of a million witnesses that the soul persists after death and can temporarily manifest in a very solid form. It can even eat a cookie! After Jesus Christ was resurrected, he walked through a locked door and shared a meal with his frightened apostles. They touched him to verify that he was not just a ghost.

Betty's dad had an experience when his wife died. He went to the funeral home, and there was Dorothy his wife behind the counter. She was laughing at him. She waved and laughed and walked right through the parlor. Betty swears that neither her grandmother nor her father would make up such stories. 

Betty had her own experience with her mother. They knew that she was dying, so they made what they figured would be the last visit to her. She was not responsive or cognizant of their visit, however. They had to leave due to other obligations before she actually died. Halfway across New Mexico, they looked up into what had been a cloudless sky to see one unusual cloud. Betty pointed it out to her husband, Evans. He said, “That looks exactly like your mother.” Betty said, “We have to stop.” They called and found out that she had just died, so they turned around and headed back to the hospital.

I recall seeing a story on TV a long time ago of an otherworldly Thanksgiving feast. A kind neighbor woman, living in the same apartment complex, invited a single mother and her children to share a wonderful Thanksgiving meal. It was extra special because they had never met before. The day after Thanksgiving, the mother went to the apartment where the neighbor lived. The apartment was completely empty. Utterly perplexed, she went to the manager and asked about the apartment, and was told that no one had lived there for some time.

These narratives verify that life is not meaningless. We are not adrift and alone in the universe. A presence is with us, which we can appreciate or repel by our attitude.