Happy Halloween Week! Monday

I'm going to write up some ghost stories this week to go along with the spirit of Halloween though my mom has way more interesting stories since one of her hobbies is actually ghost investigating. Meaning she is one of those crazy people who will set up cameras and recording equipment and spend the night someplace to prove/find more proof it is haunted.

My first experience was, as mentioned earlier, when I was seven or eight. I used to be a night owl so I was always up late reading. One night, not too long after we had moved into our "new" to us home, I was deep into a Beverly Cleary (the opposite of anything creepy) and I looked up to see a man in the doorway. Umm, who? what? I don't remember being scared but I did duck under the covers and I remember saying "who is there??" "Is someone there??" No answer. He was gone by the time emerged and I guess I went to sleep that night? I'm not sure I was old enough to even know what a ghost was. I didn't tell my parents because, you know what, I am not sure why. I guess it never came up in conversation until...
One night, a few years later, my mom had an antique club meeting at our house. After the club meeting a friend was telling her a ghost story. I wasn't really paying attention until my mom started acting suspicious by telling her friend to come out on the porch with her. THAT peaked my interest so I snuck over to the door to hear what I obviously was not supposed to be hearing. She was telling a story about how she was watching Price is Right, doing some pricing for her booth, the usual mid-morning activities when she heard someone coming down the stairs. She didn't initially think anything of it until she realized no one else is home! She looked up to see a man on the landing and freaked. Did someone break in and has been hiding in the attic?? What now? What is he going to do?? It was then she saw him start to say something and realized "wait a minute! It's a ghost!" and pop he vanished.

OK, I was a few years older at this point and was realizing I hadn't been crazy because this same person my mom had just described had been standing in my doorway. After everyone had gone she noticed I was acting strange and knew instantly I had heard her story and was somewhat mad because she didn't want me sleeping on their bedroom floor for the next five years. I blurted out "I've seen him too!" which instantly eased her temper into shock? or perhaps a validation that she also was not crazy.

We think it's the son of the original owner of the house? He passed away in a car accident. He has been helpful over the years. If we were missing anything, he would place it front and center on the kitchen table. Though sometimes our theory was he was the one who took it to begin with!  He's never done anything scary or mean except occasionally walk down those creaky stairs!