Do I believe in ghosts?
Well, let's just say that several firsthand experiences have inspired me to be a believer when I otherwise wouldn't have been one.
Many initially unexplainable things are eventually dispelled with logical resolutions. Some things are the result of over-active imaginations or illusions. I, for one, do believe in evil spirits and negative forces. Demons. The Dark Side.
Do I scare easily?
Not any more. It takes a helluva lot to scare me. I've been through far too much. In time, eternal fear turns into exasperated anger and loses its potency.
Long ago I was a timid wimp, afraid of my own shadow. I spent the first half of my life being terrified of my father and his relentless rage. I eventually learned to deal with the endless pile of negative shit that is dumped on us from cradle to grave. It's called survival.
But I'm off track, as usual - - wandering from ghosts to anger. Where was I?
Ghosts. In the forest.
When I first moved out here in the wilderness, I was admittedly slightly intimidated. Especially at night. Being alone in a midnight forest gives new meaning to isolation and darkness. There were all kinds of strange noises, inhuman sounds. And the absolute darkness was unnerving. I locked the doors. My imagination went into overdrive.
Eventually I got used to it and almost began to like it. I now go outside at night with hardly a negative thought. I pay little attention to the howling coyotes or wolves or dogs - - or all the other strange noises of the forest. I'm cautious - I'm not a fool - - but I'm not scared.
When night falls.....
My back yard is right on the edge of the forest. It's a moonless night. I suddenly see a pair of eyes glowing yellow-gold in the nearby thicket. It moves slowly across the sightless length of the woods and disappears. I stand there, looking in the direction of the vanishing point. Nothing.
What was it? Coyote? Wolf? Werewolf??
Naw, couldn't be werewolf. No full moon. Just as I'm about to go inside, I see something else in the forest - - in the opposite direction of the aforementioned glowing eyes. It's a light. An orb. Round, glowing. It disappears. Just when I'm convinced it was only my acute imagination, I see it again: moving among the trees.
Now I'm spooked. What is it? A flashlight? If so, who would possibly be out in a forest in the middle of nowhere at nearly 2:00 a.m.? A blood-drenched escapee from a mental hospital, desperately looking for shelter.......
I hurry inside, lock the door, turn out all the lights. Grab my cell phone. Who am I gonna call - Ghostbusters?
My kitchen window is oversized and curtainless. I sit by it, looking out at blackness until my eyes slowly adjust. I see the orb light again, and then another, and another. They're drifting among the trees - - some low to the ground, others higher up. They vanish, then reappear.
Are they ghost lights? Will O' the Wisp? Ignis Fatuus? Feux follets? My intuition tells me they're fireflies. I'm certainly familiar with lightning bugs (which are supposedly fireflies) but they emit a soft, yellowish glow. These forest orbs are large, blueish in color, and bright. Perfectly round.
I become so mesmerized by the lights that I eventually go outside, walk to the edge of the forest, and watch for at least fifteen minutes. It's an enchanting display of post-midnight magic: lazy round lights, drifting on a sea of nothingness, blinking in blue iridescence.
I anxiously wait to see them again the next night, but it's cooler and there are fewer lights.
Tonight, as I write this, it's very cold and there are no forest lights at all.
No ghosts. No escapee maniacs. My uneducated guess is fireflies. Or, perhaps, Will O' the Wisp.
Whatever they are, I'll look forward to seeing more of them on the next warm night.
This picture of Will O' the Wisp, which I lifted from the Internet, is exactly what they looked like.
Note: I removed my most recent blog post Family Photo Album. I might re-post it in the future.
Jon,
ReplyDeleteI can help but think that you sitting out there in your sylvan oasis is a source of interest to whatever creatures of the night lurk behind every bush, tree and shadow. I'm curious, has your cousin seen the same forces? Does she live alone too? I do believe in ghosts but I also believe that they won't hurt you but they can scare the hell out of you. Did you ever see the movie "The Haunting" form the book written by Shirley Jackson? That was probably the best "horror" movie I've ever seen but ironically, you never once saw a ghost or monster The ghosts were all in their imagination, and isn't our imagination the most horrifying?
Ron
Imagination is indeed extremely powerful. I do believe that these lights are fireflies - but why are they blue? I haven't yet discussed this with my cousin but I plan to see her in a few days. Nancy lives much closer to town and is surrounded by neighbors. I doubt if she is familiar with these forest orbs. Yes, she does live alone (her husband is deceased).
DeleteYes, The Haunting is a great movie and one that I'll have to watch again. I haven't seen it in years.
Jon,
DeleteWhen I saw "The Haunting", I didn't realize that I never saw a monster until the end of the movie but this movie frightened me more than any monster movie save maybe the original "Frankenstein" movie, which scared me so much I was afraid to leave the movie theater (I was ten years old at the time).
I'm glad you live near your cousin who also lives alone. I remember when my late friend Bob McCamley moved to the "wilds" of Delaware (nearby where I live now) back in the early Seventies, the real estate agent told him "You'll never see another house on this road in your lifetime." Of course he was wrong because when Bob died last September his "out in the country road" was lined with houses. Maybe you'll get lucky like that too and have new neighbors. By the way, how many acres do you have? Enough to keep your privacy I hope.
Ron
I have two acres and the property is surrounded by trees Some other people do live out in this area but they are far from me. My biggest concern is that I frequently see logging trucks and work trucks. I hope they're not chopping down the forest......
DeleteWhooooooo! Spooky! Though as long as the cause turns out to be rational (how can it NOT be?) you can view it as a curious and very interesting natural phenomenon.
ReplyDeleteI don't WANT to believe in ghosts but, whether one believes in an afterlife or not - and I tend not to - it seems that SOMETHING is going on which hasn't been satisfactorily explained. Can never believe that every single one of the accounts of encountering such an entity is invented. Also can never watch one of those TV progs that try to measure a ghostly presence or get them to manifest themselves. On retiring I'd never be able to get to sleep.
Ron mentions his favourite film of the hauntings genre. In the 1970s there was a glut of them and my own favourite is one of those that started the craze going, though it wasn't much liked by the critics - 'The Amityville Horror' (only the original one, not the sequels). Boy, that film really got to me!
"The Amityville Horror" is an extremely unnerving film. I've only seen it once, and once was enough. I don't tend to believe in an afterlife, either - - and I don't believe in genuine "ghosts" (people returning in spirit form after death), but I do believe in evil forces, possibly demons. I've had a few very real and frightening experiences in the past. I'll write about them sometime.
DeleteI don't believe in ghosts but that is because I've never seen one. Don't think I could ever live alone where you do. When we lived on the ranch if John was gone I would turn all the lights off and sit on the front porch in the dark until he came home. I guess my middle name is Chicken.
ReplyDeleteI'd be rather afraid to sit on the porch all night. I suppose I'm a chicken, too, but I've learned to be a brave one.
DeleteI would have been very spooked. Mind you, I wouldn't be doing chores at 1.30am either! Got to be fire flies, right? The red glow through your window is spectacular!
ReplyDeleteAs an incurable night owl, I often do chores at unreasonable hours. I truly think that these mysterious lights are fireflies. I just don't understand why they're so large and blue in color. Weird.....
DeleteWe sold our home about a year ago. It was built in 1904 and had been many things. Originally built as a school; then owned by the Catholic Church (?). Don't know what they did with it. It was a boarding house at one time and later renovated and turned into a single family residence. It was quite large and over the years I experienced numerous things that I believe were super-natural. First was cold spots and unusual musty smells. There was one bedroom I would not even take a nap in. Many times when I walked in there was a very swift movement of light that crossed the room and disappeared. The main thing I "saw" almost daily was the image of what appeared to be a young girl with long hair peering thru the back door window. That door opened to an enclosed porch area. I say "saw" because I never could see her straight-on, but in my peripheral vision and when I turned to look she was always gone. The strangest thing about this was that after our house flooded in Katrina, we were out of it for about 18 months while it was under repair. When we moved back in, I never saw her again. Only the vision in the bedroom was scary to me. The other things were just interesting.
ReplyDeleteWow, you're former home has an interesting story. I'm not surprised that you experienced strange goings-on. If I hadn't experienced such things myself, I would have never believed them. I lived in a "haunted" apartment in California for about two years. Doors slammed shut by themselves and there were heavy footsteps in the hallway at night.
DeleteMy parents had a spooky house in Texas. One night my Mom woke up and saw "something" standing by the bed. It touched her left foot. In a few days, she got a serious unexplained foot infection in her left foot and almost died from it. It took her nearly a year to recover.
I also had an experience in an old graveyard in Springfield, Missouri. I'll write about it sometime.
I meant to say that your house has an interesting"history", not "story".
DeleteI do not believe those lights are fireflies. I think fireflies come mostly in the hot summer. I believe they must be orbs. They sure are big whatever they are. More power to whomever figures out what they are for sure.
ReplyDeleteMy initial thought was that it's too early in the year for fireflies. I usually remember them appearing between June through August, on hot, humid nights.
ReplyDeleteThis is most fascinating! I wonder what they can be. I have heard of lights floating across marsh land. It doesn't look as if it is that marshy round where you are. It is good that you feel enchanted by them - my thinking is that they might be good fairies rather than spooky ghosts! :)
ReplyDeleteI agree. I don't think spooky ghosts would be so fascinating and lovely to look at. I'm stil thinking that they cod be fireflies - - but it seems too early in the year, and I've never seen blue ones,
ReplyDeleteMy last office in Kentucky was in a haunted building, and old catholic nursing school building.
ReplyDeleteThat;s fascinating. I'd love to heard more about it (any unusual encounters?)
DeleteI've never heard of a Will O' the Wisp before! The slow dance you describe sounds both fearsome and strangely inviting.
ReplyDeleteAs a confirmed coward, I'd love having some 'exasperated anger' kick in.
Myra, these lights are truly puzzling. They don't look like fireflies, even though they probably are.
ReplyDeleteAnger will eventually expunge fear.......
My daughter would be all over that forest and hillside in a second to catch those orbs in motion. She used to chase ghosts or paranormal phenomena as a hobby. I believe you saw what you saw. The question is why? Was it something sinister? Or was it some kind of good omen with prophetic significance. Guess time will time if you see the Will O' the Wisp again.
ReplyDeleteI wish I could film them, but it's a complete impossibility (I don't have the right camera equipment). Our warm weather has vanished and it's been cold lately. With the cold weather, the orb lights have disappeared. I'm anxiously waiting for another warm night.
DeleteI'm guessing ignis fatuus because of the gassy look of the orbs -- in a state of preignition and following air currents among the trees. I've seen fireflies in Texas and they are more well-defined points of light.
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your input, Geo. This mystery has rendered me quite clueless. Even though I initially thought of fireflies, it seems too early in the year for them. Perhaps I need the assistance of Hercule Poirot.
DeleteSo far, I've never had a run in with a ghost and do my best to try and find rational reason before pinning things 'supernatural'. Then again, can it really be called that? If it takes place in nature, it's natural, but perhaps just not truly understood. Maybe paranormal would be a better title. Thankfully for some, there are psychical research groups that reach out to help those visited upon once your GP, council, neighbours and the rest of the community, brand you a nut.
ReplyDeleteI believe the orbs you saw must have been fascinating, Jon. I'd probably cope with seeing them for myself providing they remained pretty balls of light! What an amazing sky, btw, what fabulous fiery streaks.
They certainly weren't ghosts. I still think they were either very unusual fireflies or some sort of will o' the wisp phenomena. Fascinating, nevertheless.
ReplyDeleteThe answer is they were, "Synchronous fireflies (Photinus carolinus) are one of at least 19 species of fireflies that live in Great Smoky Mountains National Park?Tennessee. They are the only species in America whose individuals can synchronize their flashing light patterns.Their light patterns are part of their mating display. Each species of firefly has a characteristic flash pattern that helps its male and female individuals recognize each other. Most species produce a greenish-yellow light; one species has a bluish light. The males fly and flash and the usually stationary females respond with a flash. Peak flashing for synchronous fireflies in the park is normally within a two-week period in late May to mid-June."
ReplyDeleteThanks a lot for the information. You've hit the target with a bullseye.
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