Let me preface this story by saying that although I'm a great lover of ghost stories, including true ones such as those found on this site, I am normally reluctant to immediately leap to the conclusion that ghosts or demons are responsible for unexplained phenomena... But in this case, I'm simply stumped and would welcome any explanations you dear readers can offer!
In the early summer of 2005, my husband Pete and I (and our dog) purchased and moved into our first house. We had been there about two months, just long enough to get comfortable and know the creaks and noises particular to this structure, when I experienced this strange incident.
At the time, Pete telecommuted from home; he always worked nights, although what nights he worked varied from week to week. I could never keep up with his schedule, and I didn't really bother... He was at home, after all.
So this one particular evening, the dog and I said goodnight to Pete and went off to bed early, closing the door behind us out of habit, because Pete's office was just across the hall and he could sometimes get noisy as he worked. I fell asleep as usual, and then was awoken a few hours later by the dog, who was at the foot of my bed, keening and whining in a way that I had never heard before. It was unnerving, actually. As was the way she cowered; there was just enough ambient light in the room to see her cringing as she wailed and stared at the closed door. "What the hell?" I thought.
As I watched the dog, puzzled by her behaviour, I became aware of footsteps moving down the hallway, from Pete's office to the bathroom, past our bedroom door. "What's her problem?" I thought, "its just Pete walking to the bathroom... He is working tonight, right?" Curious, I reached across the bedclothes, and sure enough, I found Pete sound asleep in bed with me, clearly not working tonight! "Whoa!" Suddenly, the walking sounds stopped. The dog quit whining and jumped up, tail wagging and acting as though nothing out of the ordinary had occurred.
OK...who the hell was out walking in the hall? If it were an intruder, the dog would be tearing the door down to get at him/her. She wouldn't react at all if it were just house creaks, why would she? Anyway, I was awake and aware and it sounded like somebody walking, not random creaks. And why was the dog puling in a puddle on the floor? I wouldn't go so far as to say the dog is aggressive, but she's no wimp, either. I have never before or since this incident seen her so...so...like a combination of scared and subdued, as if she had met something that she not only feared but respected... Sorry to anthropomorphize the dog's behaviour, but I don't know how else to explain it!
Incidentally, I did not feel at all alarmed throughout the incident, as I would expect to feel if something ghostly were about. In fact, thanks to the dog waking me up, I had to visit the bathroom myself and was able to get up and go without fear (well, maybe just a little ha-ha).
Anyway, if anyone can offer some explanations or ideas about what this was, I'd be grateful!
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Duke has always been in the forefront of study on ESP and other advanced abilities, as you know, but North Carolina is pretty far to take day classes, eh? One can study on one's own (though experienced guides can further the study so much more quickly), and yet I bet half those researchers would trade places with you.
The so-called string theory asserts the 4th dimension, manifest in the study of "black holes" and "white holes" and "worm holes." I cannot expound on the science but have seen PBS programs satisfyingly explaining the theories and science already done.
There are so many ways of knowing and gliding through this universe in (and out of) these bodies of ours, and through the illusions we accept as solid reality, that the customary dichotomies soon fall into disuse.
I find interesting the amount of people coming forward to tell their (often valid) otherworldly encounters. Could the metaphorical veil be getting thinner? More easily stretched and breeched? Speculations abound.
~ James