Ghosts
Ghost stories. We have all heard one at some point in our lives, but what about our personal experiences that provided us with more than just a chill down our spine?
Growing up I lived in a home that creaked and moaned, craving investigation and calling to the curious mind to discover what dark secret it could have hidden behind its walls. My mother is a superstitious sort and never slept well in that home. When I was about 5 years old I had imaginary friends that I would play with in the backyard; which didn’t help my mom’s opinion of the house. She was positive that the house was haunted, some nights she would call for me and I would jump from the top bunk of my bed and run down to her bedroom. She was always sitting up in her bed and would ask me to look and see if I can see anything. I would always reply with no. I genuinely didn’t see a ghost.
My older sister has dreams with departed souls. She has had them since she was a little girl. When my grandma passed away no one expected it. In fact it was my sis who alerted my mom that she just had a dream with grandma and she said that she was happy and everything was going to be okay.
I had sleep paralysis throughout my childhood. Waking up unable to move is bad enough but I would also hallucinate which was terrifying. One morning I woke up before dawn and couldn’t move from the side on which I was lying. Forced to look forward out my window I saw two little girls staring into the window with ebony hair and fair skin. No words were exchanged but we stared at each other for what felt like hours before the sun rose and I could move again.
Is there something more out there? What are we to make of our superstitions? I haven’t seen any ghosts or hallucinated since I was a little kid. Could it be something that we grow out of? As we age do we face disillusionment to the point of narrowing our visual potential? I think that the big takeaway from my sister’s story, my mother’s nervousness towards that house and my sleep paralysis is that life can have challenges outside of what we have planned. That isn’t so scary if you align yourself in a way to combat such challenges.
We all owe it to ourselves to be honest, kind and good willed. That’s not to be confused with an apathetic approach to self-improvement. Developing oneself and keeping your nose to the grindstone can better serve you then never experiencing any trouble. True enlightenment does not lie in text but in your action from such sources. Not to say it can’t be any other type of material, that would be too narrow in scope.
Live, Laugh, Love is nice but means nothing without Death, Despair, Hatred. Knowing the greater opposites of what makes us who we are establishes a stronger groundwork for the future. We cannot hope to be all we can be if we live a one track life. Negative aspects of ourselves help us grow as people and offer the chance for new adventures in challenging the norm of our persona.
Best,
Bryan
