Retell of My True "Ghost Story" ... 👻

Mark and I are still in the process of watching any supposedly "good" horror movies over the last decade that we haven't seen so that I can finish my horror-movie series, which began here (Best Horror Films of All Time), but in the meantime, I thought I'd retell one of my 2 "ghost stories" - or better put, "unexplained phenomena."

So when my daughter was about 18 months old, we were staying at my grandparent's farm house.  I put her crib in the "front room," which was the living room of the house, with no TV, radio, or anything electronic in the room. (This will become important later.)

My bed was in the next room, with headboard of the bed against the wall between the two rooms.

So, after putting her to bed, I was awakened at 2 a.m. by my daughter giggling and laughing, "talking" to something or someone in the room.

I came in there and turned on the lamp, and there she was, standing up in her crib, talking and giggling to the air, as if someone was standing there.

 

Me:  "What you doing, silly girl?  It's nigh-night time, time for sleeping. " 

 

Daughter:  "Da man, dere (pointing behind me).  Funny."  

 

Me:  "There's no man there, silly goose.  You're dreaming, pictures while you sleep, like a movie, right?  Let's go back to seepy time nigh-night." 

 

Daughter: "Da man, he tickle ma belly." 

 

Me:  "He did WHAT, now? Tickled your belly?!!  Oh, how ... silly.  Well, tell the man nigh-night and let you sleepy time.   Nigh-night man, it's time for sleepy nigh-night!"

So I patted her on the back until she fell asleep, and while sitting there, I swear on her life, I heard a man's muffled voice, sounding as if it was coming through electronics of some kind, but I couldn't understand what he said.

I jumped up and went looking around the house to see if anyone left the TV on in the other room, a radio, if the neighbors about a quarter of a mile away were awake and perhaps the sound carried or something - but there was nothing.

Then I laughed at myself, figuring I must have fallen asleep while patting her back, despite my entire adult life, my generalized anxiety disorder prevents me from falling asleep anywhere, unless it's a bed in a quiet, dark room.

I remember saying aloud to myself "Wow, are you sleep deprived - you're falling asleep sitting up, thinking YOU hear a man, now lol. Get thee to bed, at once!"

So I went back to bed, and about an hour later, same thing - she's up, giggling and talking.

I come back in the room, turn on the light, and ask her who she's talking to?

Daughter:  "Da man, Mommy.  He dere!  Look, Mommy!" (Pointing right behind me.)  

 

Me (turning around to look behind me):  "There's no man there, silly girl.  It's okay. It's just a dream, movies while you sleep.  Let's lie down here and take a lil napper." 

She lies down and looks up at me, but is now turning down her mouth as if she might cry, getting really frustrated and a bit scared - not because of the man, but because I don't see him and will not introduce her or acknowledge "the man" she's pointing to, behind me.

Daughter:  "Mommy!  Who da man?  Who da man, Mommy?!?." 

 

Me:  "Mommy doesn't see a man there, Baby, but it's okay if you do.  But tell the man night-night, see you in the morning time!  Tell him you need sleepy-time now."

Then my daughter gets silent -  and her eyes and head literally follow and track something from behind me to right next to her, in the crib,

I mean, as if she was watching someone walk from behind me to beside her, to the left of her, in the crib.

And here's the chill-giving part ... 

Daughter:  "Mommy, he say 'His house, his homb.' Wat dat?"

 

Me:  "His house, his home, you mean? 

 

Daughter: "Es.  Es, Mommy."  ("Es" meaning "yes," at 18 months old.)

NOW, I'm paying attention?

Because my child-development courses have taught me that 18-month-old children cannot yet use possessive pronouns like "his" and "hers" - they haven't grasped the concept yet, no matter how early they began speaking.

At most, they can say "mine" or "my," but even "you" is a stretch, for an at 18-month-old, and there's no way they can grasp the concept of "his" or "hers" yet, because they won't even learn that others are a separate entity from themselves for another 1-3 years!

AND my grandparents built that house, so there was no one who lived there before; however, the land had been in our family since 1732?

Me:  "Okay, I don't know, but he won't hurt you.  It's okay.  Tell the man you need seepy time and night night.  Night night, silly man!" 

 

Daughter:  "Santa Claus. He tickle ma belly. Okay? Okay."

Now, at this point, I'm trying not to freak out -  because she didn't seem concerned until she realized I couldn't see or hear whatever this was - who was touching my daughter, tickling her belly!!!

I don't like this at all, whatever's going on, so I say ...

Me:  "Erm ... okay, but the man needs to keep his hands to himself and let you sleep, so let's go and sleep in mommy's room, tonight, won't that be fun?  Night night, man, see you another day."

A couple of days later, I'm reading Beatrix Potter, and my daughter covers up with both hands the picture of Mr. McGregor. 

Me:  "What you doing, Baby?  Mommy can't read the book if you cover it with your hands lol"

 

Daughter:  "Dat da man, Mommy.  In dere.  No see him.  Like Santa Claus. Go away, man."  

 

Me: "Oh, Mr. McGregor looks like the man in there, because of the beard, like Santa Claus,?"   

 

Daughter: "Es.  Be-ard.  Hat.  He tickle ma belly. No see him."   

 

Me:  "Oh, okay.  It's okay, we'll read another book.  Let's read "Goodnight Moon" then and find the mousie."

Now,  at this point, I thought the most logical explanation for all of this was simply that after reading Beatrix Potter, she was simply having bad dreams starring Mr. McGregor - problem solved, right?

However, she refused to go ever go in that other room and told everyone else not to go in there, including my little sister, calling whatever it was the "Pipba."

She'd say "No go in dere, Auntie Wu.  A Pipba in there."  

I have no idea where she got the word "Pipba," mind you, or what it  means, only that it or he or whatever it is, has a beard like Mr. McGregor or Santa Claus and that she only became scared when she realized no one else could see it, and he tickles her belly.

We moved out into our own place after that, and over time, both she and I forgot all about him.

That is, until one Easter while staying at my grandparents, about 3 years later, when she was about 4 years old ...

While sleeping in the bed I had slept in before together, she suddenly digs her little fingernails in my arm, screaming:

 "Wake up, Mommy, there's a man!  Wake up, he's right there! Mommy, help, HELP!"

I jumped awake, turning on the reading lamp bolted above the headboard, and as I did so, I kicked something sitting up - something that felt hard but soft at the same time - as if there was something laying at the end of the bed, like a dog or cat on the bed - but there wasn't.

Worse, whatever I kicked - released a soft growl.

We both froze - I mean, literally froze, sitting up in bed.  

I remember thinking I was still half-asleep and must've been half-dreaming and that she likely she didn't hear it.

However - she most certainly did.

 

Daughter:   "Mommy, did you hear that?  Something growled?  You heard that, I know you did."

 

Me:  (Grabbing her and holding her tight):  "Okay, but we can both see there's nothing there, right? It's okay, it was just a bad dream. Tell me what happened."

 

Daughter:  "There was a man with a beard and hat, pointing at the bed.  He told me to wake you up, there's a monster down there."

 

Me: (Gulping)  "Um ... did ... you .... just say 'a man with a hat and beard?'"

 

Daughter:  "Yes!  A hat like Pap's, but he had a beard.  He said there was a monster there and wake you up,  you'd get rid of it."

 

Me:  "I think you were dreaming, honey. Everything's okay, honey, it was just a nightmare, Mom's got you."

 

Daughter:  "No, Mommy.  He was there!  You heard that growl, too, I know you did!"

 

Me:  "Yes, but that was probably Pap's old dog, Bugsy, outside the window or something, not in here. It just happened at the same time, is all."

 

Daughter:  "No, it wasn't, Mommy.  You know it wasn't.  She never growls. Mommy, please, do something!  The man told me it was a bad monster!"

 

Me: "I know, honey, but it has to be because there's no such thing as monsters!  That must've been Bugsy growling outside, it had to be. And it's not going to help us to get upset, is it?  So let's just calm down and think about whether or not it was a dream, okay? Mommy will sing to you, okay?"

 

Daughter:  "No, you don't believe me, but it was in here, I know it was.  Do something else, please, Mommy?"

 

Me:  "Okay, okay.  You know what?  Let's go take you in Granny and Pap's room to sleep and I'm going to say a special prayer and make it go away, okay?  It's okay.  Mommy's gonna make it go away, everything is okay now, okay?  Nigh night!  We'll go get ice cream tomorrow."

It's not that I either believed or disbelieved, at the time, as an agnostic - and  had she not said the weird hat-and-beard guy, like she described seeing at 18 months old, I would've just thought it was nightmare. 

So I tried to remember my old charismatic evangelical upbringing and did a special prayer in Jesus' name - which I have never found otherwise to work or be helpful lol.

Then I did ... something else lol.

I got a box of matches, lit one, and said this ...

"Listen, whatever you are - if she hadn't said the beard and hat thing, which we've both forgotten about, and she can't possibly remember from 18 months old, I would chalk this up to a bad dream, and I did hear that growl, too, and kicked - something at the end of the bed. I hoped she didn't hear it, too, but she did."

"Now, I don't know who or what you are, or whether you're trying to help warn us or harm us, but I know this - if you EVER bother my daughter again - if anyone ever sees, hears, or so much as smells you,  I promise, I will burn this MF down, when my grandparents pass, I swear I will - do you hear me?" 

"

But there was no need for that - because it never showed up or was heard from again.  😂

The next day, we all asked her if she remembered ever seeing this man before and she didn't (though she had, when she was 18 months old, a couple of times).

We never mentioned it again, not wanting to make things worse - at least until she was a preteen, kind of tease-asking her if she remembered the "Pipba in dere" at Granny and Pap's house lol.

But she didn't - she didn't remember any of it, thank goodness!

Spooky, though, right?