WEIRD HAPPENINGS

OK, I've got another one for you and I swear it's true.

I was raised on a farm. My dad watered his fields using row irrigation. It became one of my duties to go out to the field once an hour to see whether or not any of the numbered rows had water that completed it's 1/2 mile flow from the irrigation pipes to the end. I'd have to write the numbers down and then go to the opposite end of the field to shut those gates off and open new ones.

Because the checking schedule was so frequent, I often had to stay home alone while the rest of the family did activities away.

I was 12 years old back in 1969. I'd become accustomed to being alone on the farm and sometimes looked forward to it. With my 3 sisters gone I could choose what was on TV. There wasn't anything unusual about this particular day. As evening approached I made my last field check and slowed the flow from the irrigation pipes by opening extra gates. - That's the way we always set it up for overnight.

The sun was setting as I got back to the house. My dog George had been following me each time I went out to the field. Often my only companion, I would sometimes let him in the house when no one else was here. That day he wouldn't come in. I shrugged it off and went inside to watch television.

Within a few minutes I began to hear strange noises. It's an old house and I wasn't about to let my imagination get the best of me. I ignored the sounds and kept watching whatever show I had on.

- But the sounds didn't go away. Instead they became louder. It seemed as though there were footsteps coming from behind the hallway door. I turned the volume down on the TV. - I could still hear it. I turned the TV off.

For awhile the house was silent. I started telling myself that it had only been my imagination. As I was about to turn the television back on, - I heard it again.

As quietly as I could, I inched towards the hallway door. Very slowly, I turned the knob. I think I held my breath as I pulled it open. Though dim, there was enough daylight coming in through the windows that I could still see without needing to turn anything on. The hallway was empty but I knew something had to have made those sounds.

At the end of the hallway was a spare bedroom. No one ever used it but it was completely furnished and always kept clean. By this time I was getting spooked. Despite my growing anxiety I kept going but tried to be as silent as I could. I was prepared to run if necessary when I pushed the door open and looked inside.

The shades were drawn making it darker than the rest of the house. As I stepped in I saw someone standing in front of the west window. - A dark figure. It didn't make sense but I immediately recognized the shape to be that of a nun. (at that time all the nuns wore habits that covered their heads) I swung my hand to the light switch and clicked it on. The figure was gone.

I don't know if I ran but I know I got out of the house as quick as I could. I waited outside until the rest of the family came home. George and I huddled together and neither one of us went within 50 feet of the front door.

I imagine my folks thought it was peculiar that I was outside but they never said anything. I never did either. I didn't figure they'd believe me and if they thought I was making up stories I'd probably be punished.

A few weeks later I overheard a conversation between my folks and one of the neighbors. They were discussing a car crash that had happened 5 miles away earlier that year. 3 nuns were killed instantly. I hadn't heard of it before then.
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FAST FORWARD 30 YEARS:


After decades of living elsewhere I moved back to the farm. It was out of economic necessity after I got divorced. I lived alone out there for several years. I don't recall anything out of the ordinary happening until I met Teresa.

We were sitting on the couch together one evening when Teresa screams. She was convinced there was someone else in the house. She said she saw their reflection in the wall mirror as they walked by. I didn't take her seriously until she described exactly what she thought she saw. "It was a dark figure shaped like a nun".

Needless to say, I had never told her about my encounter when I was 12 years old.