Old Lady Under The Bird Cage

This story happened a few years after The Snake Man story. I was about 18 and I had started to work in an old retirement home as a nursing assistant down the central coast of NSW. I worked there for a few months before I saw anything paranormal.

The nursing home was a huge, single story place but had two outdoor courtyards which were inside the nursing home. The whole nursing home was the shape of the number eight and each wall that faced the courtyards were covered in big floor to ceiling windows. You could stand at one end of the nursing home and look through the windows to almost the other side of the nursing home.

I started working morning shifts but as my skills had increased, they decided to start me on night shifts. I didn't mind because the pay was a little better and I have not been one to have a busy social life so I agreed to it.

I came on shift and had report from the previous staff, all was well. Then I was instructed to turn all the hall lights off and then check this one resident's room as they had gone to bed late (from a day outing or family visit), so his electronic wheelchair was in his room and would need to be taken to the morgue to be charged.

The morgue was a room that had no door to get in from the outside and had a row of electric chargers for about 5 electric wheelchairs to be plugged in. We called it the morgue as there was an old gurney that had body bags and sheets on it if someone passed away. We would wash the body, then put it into a body bag and leave them in that room on the gurney with the air conditioning on and leave them there for the funeral people to come and take the body. The room looked like it had been used for a big bathroom as the floor and halfway up the walls were tiled.

I was new like I said and I needed a lot of instruction but they were happy with my eagerness and willingness to help out whenever I can. The registered nurse instructed me to get the electric wheelchair out of the resident's room and bring it to the morgue for charging.

I had checked, all the residents were in their beds and all was peaceful. I shut off all the lights in the halls but there was still a small amount of light from the exit signs and small hall lights that don't turn off. I was walking down the back hall and I looked straight ahead and I saw an old lady sitting under the bird cage.

The residents had a budgie in a small cage in a room that was called the Friendship Room. There was a big TV, tables and chairs, games, books and other arts and crafts stuff.

I was walking towards the Friendship Room when I saw the old lady sitting under the birdcage but I stopped halfway in the middle of the hallway as I said to her, "Are you OK? It's very late and everyone is in bed." She just sat there and looked at me. I could see she had snow white hair, which looked to be curled and she had a white satin night dress on. She also had big black framed glasses on, that looked very thick. The room was dark but I could see her clearly as an emergency exit sign was above her.

I looked directly at her and waited about ten seconds for a response but I got none. I thought at the time maybe she was hearing impaired and I should go to her ear so she may hear me clearer, then all of a sudden I heard loud laughing and banging from the other side of the nursing home. I turned my head to look at the two other nursing assistants pushing a medication trolly and joking and laughing. They were on the other side of the nursing home but I could see through the windows, through the courtyard and through the other windows on the other side.

I only broke my gaze at the old lady for about three seconds and when I had turned to look back at her she was gone! I ran to the room as I thought she might have fallen over. I flicked the lights on and looked around the room but no one was there.

After that I started to tremble with fear because at that time I was very scared of anything supernatural. I ran and told the other nursing staff and they just said, "Yeah, we see stuff like that all the time." I needed to sit down so I asked for five minutes to go have a cigarette which they agreed.

I grabbed my smokes and sat out in one of the courtyards at an outdoor table and chairs. I was shaking so bad from fright and as I looked around the dim courtyard, I saw what looked like someone sitting on a wooden chair under a big shadow from the tree.

All I could see of them was the hips down as the rest of him was behind the big shadow of the tree. I could see old brown boots and woolen/cotton pressed pants that were dark brown as well.

I started to freak out and hyperventilate. I looked away and back at the spot I had seen the man and nothing was there. My hair stood up and I was shaking so bad I dropped my smoke. I sat there for a few minutes then thought it was stupid of me to be so scared and I thought I should not anger it so I said to it, "Would you like to join me?" After I said this I pushed out a chair and I felt my dread go and I felt peaceful. I sat there just talking out loud and felt a lot better.

After all this I had forgotten about charging the wheelchair so I put my stuff in my bag and went back in the nursing home. I got the wheelchair from the room it was left in but I banged into the wall as I wasn't very good at using the electronic controls so I put the wheelchair in manual so I could push it.

I walked down the hall but it was awkward as I have very big feet and my feet kept hitting the back of the motor on the wheelchair so I walked with it out in front of me and my back was hunched and I was looking down at the motor as to not hit it with my feet. I turned the corner and I saw black dress shoes and navy blue, long pants and I assumed it was the registered nurse. I called out for them to wait as there was something I had wanted to ask the nurse (can't remember now what it was). They were walking away from me and I yelled again for them to wait and they started to power walk away from me. I got a bit annoyed and thought they were playing games with me so I ran after the person. They started running and I followed them down the hall and then they ran into the morgue. I didn't hear the door open or close and when I realized this I felt so scared. I knocked on the morgue door then opened the door and turned the light on. There was no one in the room and no where for anyone to hide or exit the room. I grabbed the chair and plugged it in as fast as I could and ran out with the light still on in the room.

I would see ghosts in this nursing home all the time at night but got used to them after almost one year of constant exposure to ghosts. When I would see them there they were solid and looked just like a living person.

Thank you for reading.