House Guests

The first house we lived in as I was growing up was over 200yrs old and it had at least two active ghosts. One ghost was a little girl named Emily who was my playmate for several years. In order to play with Emily I would stand on my bed and look into the mirror that faced the bed and call for her to come and play. She would normally appear in the mirror dressed in an old timey pinafore dress, with ribbons in her hair and would either be barefoot (summer time) or wear what looked to be scuffed maryjanes (winter). We would sing songs or jump rope (on top of the bed which was a big no-no) or play counting rhyme games. My mother couldn't see her and claimed the room was always colder when I was playing with Emily and that my eyes would track something in the mirror that my mother couldn't see. I remember the day Emily wasn't there anymore. I stood on the bed as aways and she wouldn't come play with me. I was very sad and somehow knew that I would never see her again.

The other ghost was terrifying. It lived upstairs in the playroom and I would never go into the playroom alone for fear it would "get" me. The playroom was always cold and the doors to the room would never stay closed, even when latched and locked. It hated rock and roll music and would scream and thump on walls until you switched the music off. Silly kids records (itsy,bitsy spider, etc)or classical music it liked fine. There was nothing wrong with the record player or the records. After we moved, we could play the rock and roll records without a problem. Late at night my mother would sometimes hear music being played that sounded like a piano or organ (we had neither and no close neighbors) and a tap-tap-tap sound out in the back yard as if someone was walking with a cane.

The next family that moved in after us, didn't stay long, we always wondered why. After being vacant for several years, the house finally sold. Today the house has been totalled remodeled, but I wonder if someone still lingers.