The Ghosts in Our Midst, Part 1

After my great-grandmother’s funeral - in the early 60s - the family, except for my grandfather, went back home to bed. They all crammed into the space available: my mother and one uncle shared one bedroom, the other uncle and my grandmother the other. It was summertime, and the air was hot and humid; they left the windows and the doors to the front hall open, to get the air circulating. That particular area of the house was rather large, and the parquet floor squeaked beyond belief. In the middle of the front hall, there was a table. It was actually a 200-year old table with matching chairs. Because it was an antique, my grandmother wouldn’t let anyone near it, afraid that we would damage it.

Whether it was due to the heat or the whole ordeal of the funeral, my mother couldn’t fall asleep. She tried to close her eyes and relax, but occasionally glanced out into the darkness. Then, she heard the steps. Someone was walking on the well-known squeaky parquet floor of the front hall. Then, she heard the steps coming towards her. She tried to see who it was, but due to the darkness, she couldn’t see anyone. Then the steps moved away and headed toward the room her mother and her brother were sleeping in. Then the walker reversed course, and started coming towards her again. She heard this happen several times.

My mother then heard a different and louder noise. It sounded as if someone had pulled out a chair and seated themselves at the antique table. This noise awakened her brother. At first, he stayed in bed and just listened to the weird sounds for a few moments. He then decided he had to find out who was in the hall. So he ran into the hall and flipped on the light. Though he had heard the sounds just moments before, when he turned on the light, he saw no one sitting at the table. By now, the whole household was awake and everyone joined in the search for the possible intruder or prankster. No one was ever found. The apartment remained locked at all times. In my opinion, this was a classic case of ghosts in our midst.