Late one night, at a college party in Muncie, Indiana, I walked with my friend and her boyfriend down to his basement bedroom to put him to sleep after one-too-many unsuccessful beer pong games. We’d convinced him to come downstairs by requesting he show me of the action figures he had been collecting — a series of intricate Transformers that I genuinely did want to see.
As she tucked him in for the night with a couple Advil and a big cup of water, I chatted with another acquaintance before returning to the party upstairs. Suddenly, we heard an aggressive rapping on the shutter doors lining the wall to our left. We swore we saw them shake.
We opened the doors to find nothing but an unfinished laundry closet, with peeks into the crawlspace under the house. The washer and dryer sat still and quiet.
Could it have been the other closet door? We moved to the other corner and opened to find a long narrow clothing closet, with no person or other entity in sight. Our faces went pale as we tried to process what we had seen and heard. Was it just in our heads? How did we both hear it?
“Our faces went pale as we tried to process what we had seen and heard. Was it just in our heads?“
I recounted the story to my friend the next day, who had been so busy making sure her partner was cared for that she didn’t hear anything — or even see us poking around the room as we looked for what it was. Her response?
“Oh, that was probably just Gary.”
The story goes that a man passed away in the kitchen upstairs many years prior, and was known in this college rental house to close and open doors, turn faucets on, and flicker the lights on occasion. Whether it was just a fun story to unnerve me, or was really true, I realized how open I was to the idea of hauntings, visitings, and other paranormal experiences — and how many people in my life were, too.
I’m no stranger to the unexplained; growing up in a 100-year-old house will do that to you. My mom tells stories like the time there were three blue beads arranged in a triangle on the ceiling, that my 5-year-old brother gently knocked down with a broom handle. Or the other time, she found a sticker of the angel Gabriel underneath my other brother’s baby portrait hanging in the stairway. No one’s ever admitted to making these strange placements.
“I’m no stranger to the unexplained; growing up in a 100 year-old house will do that to you.”
I’ve lain awake terrified of inexplicable sounds and creaks, felt reassuring taps on the shoulder during times of uncertainty, and even believe that my late grandmother visits me in my dreams to play silly little tricks on me. We laugh, and she tells me she loves me before going back to wherever she’s at now. I wake up smiling and comforted.
So this Halloween season, I wanted to hear from readers who may have experienced something out of this world, too. Whether it’s angelic, ghostly, or even extraterrestrial (haven’t heard any of those yet!), I invited you to share — and here are your stories.
Have you had an experience you can’t fully explain? Drop it in the comments below!
Angelic
“I have quite a few fun experiences that have always involved the women on my mum’s side (very much in touch with ‘higher powers’ from the way I was raised and the influence of these incredible women) — a lot of recurring dreams and hearing or seeing each other when we are not together. But most recently, I was home alone, cooking on the stove, and out of nowhere there is a flash of light in my kitchen as if someone just took an intense flash photo through the window (it is middle of the day — I live on the third floor, not facing the main road) so confused I turn around, and am walking towards the window to see what it could have been and as I am headed to the window I notice that the flame on my gas stove has gone out whilst the gas was on. Someone/something had clearly been watching and was trying to get me to turn around. A really weird but comforting moment. Never before or since has there been such a flash in my kitchen again.” – MJC
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“My paranormal story actually happened just yesterday. I was working in my home office (really, the dining room) with my dog, Brownie. It was dead quiet, and then I heard keys rattling, like someone was coming inside. The weird part is we have smart locks, so no keys are needed. I tried to ignore it, but then I heard it again, like someone had opened the door and walked into the foyer.
Brownie, who always runs to greet company, immediately ran out. She stood there, looking up, barking and wagging her tail like crazy — acting as if someone was literally standing there. I was on a video call, so I watched her jump up and down, then walk sideways as if she were walking next to an invisible person. I thought, Okay, she is clearly a little off.
Then, she suddenly looked at me and then turned and ran to the back of the house as if whoever was there had walked into the guest room. I finally got up. I found her standing perfectly still in the center of the room, looking up, barking, and wagging her tail. It was as if someone had entered the house, gone straight back there, and she was genuinely excited to see them. Standing behind her, watching her interact with nothing, made the hairs on my neck stand up. Even writing this now, I have every light on in the house.
“Standing behind her, watching her interact with nothing, made the hairs on my neck stand up. Even writing this now, I have every light on in the house.”
This isn’t the first time Brownie has done this. About two months ago, I let her out on the balcony and told her she wasn’t getting a treat for it (she always pretends to pee just to get a snack). I was busy, so I let her out, leaving the door cracked and went to put away some laundry. I heard the door slam shut. I first thought my boyfriend was home, but then he called, and also there was no wind that day.
As I was on the phone, I saw her staring up at the patio door, tail wagging. She then backed up and started sniffing frantically on the floor, like a treat had been thrown to her. She looked up again, wagging, waiting for another one. It was so freaky, but honestly, it didn’t scare me as much as what happened yesterday.
It was only later, thinking back and trying to be logical, that I realized it was the two-year anniversary of my nana’s passing. My nana treated Brownie like her baby and would give her anything she wanted, especially excessive treats, which I often said no to. I’m usually the most logical person in my family, but I’ve come to terms with the fact that there are things we can’t explain. But yesterday’s activity definitely scared the daylight out of me! I think I’ll forever sleep with the lights on from now on.” – Betty H.
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“My beloved grandfather had passed away just as I was going through a difficult breakup. A couple of months later, I wandered down to our local farmer’s market and spotted the prettiest bouquet of flowers. It reminded me of him — the bouquet included tiny roses, the same kind he used to grow and tend to so lovingly.
Even though money was tight, I decided to treat myself and bought the flowers. The florist wrapped them in newspaper, and as I walked home, I felt an unexpected sense of connection to my grandfather. When I looked down, I noticed the date printed on the newspaper: it was the exact day he had died.” – Anonymous Reader
Spiritual
“Yes, I was eight years old and in my grandmother’s home built pre-Civil War. It was the middle of the night and a glowing blond girl with blue eyes and a white dress opened the door and asked me to come play with her. She had a striking resemblence to my little sister, who I double checked was in bed next to me. I hid under the covers and reported it to my mother the next day. On my eighteenth birthday, my mother finally enlightened me that they had found a diary of a young sickly girl who had passed in the home. She didn’t want to frighten me when I was younger but the imagery stuck with me to this day.” – Skyy S.
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“This isn’t a story that will leave anyone in awe, but it is one of the many strange experiences I’ve had with the supernatural that wasn’t fear inducing.
When I was walking to my car in the middle of the night, completely alone, and saw someone walking next to me. Of course, they weren’t there, but I could have sworn they were, and it kept happening for a couple of days. By then, I could have described the way the other person smelled, and even the way they seemed to favor their left side when walking. The week after I completely forgot about it, until I was walking to class and feel into step with a guy that seemed a little too familiar. Yes, you guessed it, it was the same person. We got to talking and he said it was his first day on campus, so he was a bit lost, so I offered to walk with him.
“When I was walking to my car in the middle of the night, completely alone, and saw someone walking next to me.”
He said he had a dream before arriving in which a young girl led him through a forest, and said that maybe that had been me. We only ran into each other twice after that, but it will remain such a strange occurrence, how the two of us somehow managed to be connected over such a simple thing as me helping me find his way around a campus.
It made me think of the fact that I found comfort in that strange presence, and he in turn wasn’t so alone either.” – Gabriela H.
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“My mom’s mom, Patricia, passed away before I was born so I never met her and my mom doesn’t talk about her a lot. When I was maybe 4 or 5 I was riding in the car with my mom and just suddenly started laughing. I told her I was talking to my new friend Patricia. I remember her smelling of flowers (which my mom confirmed she loved) and having very long hair (also true).” – Jordan H.
Ghostly
“At a bachelorette party in Charleston, SC, a few years ago, we went straight from a sunset booze cruise to a ghost tour. I didn’t expect to see much, but we were standing beneath a massive tree in an old graveyard as the guide told a story when an incredibly strong wind whipped up out of nowhere. Even he seemed a little frightened. As we left the graveyard, I had an instinct to snap a photo just to my right.
“I looked closer and noticed a spherical shape further up in the image. And then an entire figure appeared: a woman in a dress with a square neckline and an apron.”
The next morning, as I was scrolling through the pictures, there was a strange red line at the bottom of that photo. I looked closer and noticed a spherical shape further up in the image. And then an entire figure appeared: a woman in a dress with a square neckline and an apron. No one in our group had a dress or a top with a square neckline that night. The red line was right next to her blurry hand. We all *freaked out.*
One girl sent the photo to her mother, who lightened it and made the image even clearer. It has been three years, and I still say a prayer to that woman every night in the hopes that she doesn’t haunt me!” – Taylor H.
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“My grandparents lived in a haunted house while my uncle and I were growing up. I was always scared of what it was but also because there were 3ghosts and 1something extra. The something extra tried 3times to unalive my grandma and continued to follow my grandparents and my uncle for the rest of their lives. The 4 never bothered me but when I was 18 1 of them tried to talk to me using my grandfather’s voice.” – LL
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“Seeing a shadow hand swipe hats from a shelf. The spirit seemed to have malevolent intent because it felt threatening. The event lasted a second.” – Claire W.
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“I was staying in a castle in England and late at night I heard two girls talking in my room, I heard the kitchen in full activity and people rushing around serving plates of food, you could hear cutlery on plates. I asked the owner the next day if there was a function the previous night and she said, ‘Oh, were they at it again? That seems to be their thing with new people.’ Apparently the ghosts of parties past love to have a good time when new people stay there! I was frozen stiff in my bed but they sounded like they were having a ball!!!” – NC
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“I worked at a preschool years ago that used to be an orphanage for little boys. Every day after nap time, one little boy seemed super uncomfortable. One day he woke up looked into the dark bathroom and yelled, ‘Stop, talking to me!’ Then he looked at me and said ‘Ms. Jenn, they won’t stop talking to me.’ I told him, ‘Tell them to go home.’ He turned and screamed at the bathroom, ‘Go home. GO HOME!!!”‘ After a second, he turned and looked at me and said in a whisper, ‘He said he can’t his daddy won’t let him.’ I booked it out of the room so fast…then realized I needed to go be with the children.” – JGR
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“When I was a kid, I used to talk to my mirror. My parents would ask me who I was talking to, and I said, ‘Grandpa,’ and would describe the way he looked and the house he lived in. Apparently I had perfectly described my dad’s dad, who was killed when my dad was a child, so I had obviously never met him.
“When I was a kid, I used to talk to my mirror. My parents would ask me who I was talking to, and I said, ‘Grandpa.’”
I have no recollection of this, but when I got older, for years I was scared of looking in the mirror late as night when I was tired because I was sure I’d see something that wasn’t supposed to be there.
As an adult I learned that that grandfather wasn’t my dad’s real dad (my grandmother had cheated). After my grandma left him, he never bothered to see my dad again. Part of me wonders if he connected with me because he did still care after all and felt guilty.” – Allison S.
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“On a road trip through Montana, my bff and I accidentally stayed at a haunted motel! Upon arrival in Billings, we couldn’t manage to get into our room, even after each of us trying both doors multiple times! They just simply wouldn’t unlock. So, we went and asked the front desk for help (in retrospect, the woman working seemed a bit…concerned), and on her first try after barely turning the key the door opened very easily. Almost as if it opened on its own. We were a bit embarrassed that we weren’t able to get it to work yet she sorted it out with barely any effort, but we carried on with our evening and didn’t give it much more thought. When we finally got home from our trip, we were doing a bit of reading and ended up finding a page on the motel website about the resident ghost who messes! with! the! doors! and! Locks!!” – Ayla G.
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“My house growing up was definitely haunted. We frequently found chairs set up overnight in front of my sister’s painting easel (as if admiring her art). The craziest incident happened when my mom and I were home alone one time, and she got locked out of the house when something scooted the refrigerator to slightly block the mudroom door while she was outside. I swear it wasn’t me!” – Kaylee W.
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“I was staying at a beautiful old hotel in Boston (The Godfrey) around Christmastime a few years ago with my dad and I woke up in the middle of the night to faintly see a dark figure standing over his bed. I thought it was my dad at first but I blinked and fully woke up to nothing there. With pounding heart, I rolled over to go back to sleep and swore I felt the light touch of a child on my shoulder. I willed it away, thinking I was just spooked by a dream, and then the motion-detecting hotel bathroom light switched on. My dad was still in bed. Somebody was saying hi!!” – Caitlin V.
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“In my early twenties, I had just met the man I would eventually marry and the two of us used to petsit for extra money. One house was in my hometown at my Dad’s friend’s. One night around 3 am, we were woken up to the TV turning on and then blaring static. We figured it was just the cat.
The next day, we told my parents what had happened and they said ‘Oh, so she is real.’ Supposedly, a lot of years previously, the husband of the house told my parents that he saw a little girl ghost at night. She was never hostile and seemed like she always just wanted to play. She must have liked us because for the next year we had small moments of unexplainable play.
“The next day, we told my parents what had happened and they said ‘Oh, so she is real.’”
One night, we had gotten in a fight over videos games. We went downstairs to make dinner and reset When we came back upstairs, his controller had been hidden in the room! We found it completely across the room and underneath the bed.
A few years later, some not so interesting interactions later, we ended up at an Airbnb that had some strange vibes. The house was a split-level — in the basement half, there was a bedroom in the back with four sets of bunk beds. It gave off a very eerie vibe. One night, we heard kids playing. We asked our ghost friend out loud the next day if she’d like to stay with her new friends. Unfortunately, we haven’t had any more interactions since. I hope she’s having fun with her new ghost friends and playing with all the guests at the Airbnb.” – MN
The unknown
“Almost twenty years ago, I was my darling father’s caretaker. When he was close to his death I saw something absolutely amazing. I was woken by a bright light. I opened my eyes to see a basketball-sized sized BRIGHT sparkling sphere, like a million Fourth of July sparklers at the point where the ceiling meets the wall. My eyes followed its silent journey. I was stunned but not afraid.
“I still don’t know exactly what it was, but in my heart I know it was not of this earth and possibly heaven-sent.”
As it came to the end of my room, it simply disappeared. As I lay there wondering what the heck that was, I pinched my leg to make sure I was awake….yes I was. I still don’t know exactly, but in my heart I know it was not of this earth and possibly heaven-sent.” – KP
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“This is my second experience with the unexplained. I was sleeping at my son and daughter-in-law’s house in anticipation of the next day’s 4D ultrasound. At 4AM I was woken by a very agitating dream, which felt real. I’m a side sleeper and dreamed that a small, creepy, skinny shadow-type creature was pulling me by my exposed hand, tugging and tugging me. I woke up with a start, very annoyed. I looked at the clock and went back to sleep.
Later, we were all up and getting ready, my daughter-in-law said to me, ‘At 4 AM, I had such a weird dream. I dreamed a little shadow guy was pulling and pulling me by the hand. A woman was there who was trying to help me, but he broke her neck.’ YIKES!! My jaw must have dropped open, and I quickly grabbed my son and pulled him into the bathroom, and told him I had almost that same dream!! He said, ‘Ma, you’re creeping me out!’ At first, I thought this house was haunted, but later that day at the restaurant, I heard my DIL say to her brother she had that dream again, ‘The one I used to have when we lived at Mom’s.’ Since that day my DIL has not had that dream and neither have I but….I NEVER sleep with my hand exposed!” – KP
Emily McGowan is the Editorial Director at The Good Trade. She studied Creative Writing and Business at Indiana University, and has over ten years of experience as a writer and editor in sustainability and lifestyle spaces. Since 2017, she’s been discovering and reviewing the top sustainable home, fashion, beauty, and wellness products so readers can make their most informed decisions. Her editorial work has been recognized by major publications like The New York Times and BBC Worklife. You can usually find her in her colorful Los Angeles apartment journaling, playing with her cat, or crafting. Say hi on Instagram or follow along with her Substack, Pinky Promise.
