Read Online The Sallie House Haunting: A True Story by Debra Pickman - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Debra Pickman
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or on anyone else’s fan swing in that way. We must both have been wondering if the ball on the ceiling fan in the dining room was swinging too, because suddenly we both looked over at it. When we found no movement there, we looked back to the one above our heads.
Over the next ten minutes, we noticed more strangeness. The little wooden ball would occasionally come to a complete stop—not as if naturally slowing down, but stopping somewhat abruptly. For a couple of seconds, it would remain perfectly motionless. Then, for no apparent reason, it would start swinging again in the opposite direction.
Watching the ball, I continued to talk to Sallie and, as I did so, noticed a strange coincidence. Each time the ball stopped swinging, the baby would wake up and stare ahead with what seemed to be great concentration. Within seconds, he would fall back to sleep. Looking back at the wooden ball, we would find it swinging once again. It didn’t take us long to conclude the cats—and the baby—had been observing Sallie’s antics.
Her initial flight above and about the room had entranced the cat’s attention until her efforts were directed to the balls on the ceiling fan and then to the baby. We concluded Sallie was making her presence known. Just like normal children do when you’re trying to talk to them and their attention leaps toward something more interesting. She was moving around. It also seemed as if she was trying to show us she could wake the baby whenever she wanted to.
I was concluding my talk with Sallie when the phone rang. I informed Sallie that after I answered the phone, we would finish our talk. The caller was Barbara. She talked about how interested she was in what was going on at our house and that she really wanted to be sure her interpretation had been accurate. She asked if she could come to the house. At the time, I didn’t sense that her interest was mercenary; she simply wanted to settle her own mind and confirm what she had said to us. While she continued to talk, I told Tony of her request. Since both of us were at a loss as to how we should deal with our little ghost, we thanked her and extended an invitation.
She said she would be in Kansas City the next day for a radio interview and asked if the following evening would be a good time for her visit. Without consulting Tony, I agreed. Before hanging up, I asked if I should say anything to Sallie about the visit. She said, “That might be a good idea.”
Although I was ecstatic about Barbara’s visit, I reminded Sallie of what we had talked about before the phone call. In a much more pleasant tone of voice, I told her about my conversation with Barbara, a very special person who was able to see and hear spirits, and that Barbara would be coming for a visit in two days to try and help us get along and be happy.
While talking, my mind wandered and I realized how nice it would be to have some sort of two-way communication with our little ghost. But how? Perhaps if Sallie liked crayons, she would use them to write to us. Not expecting an answer, I asked, “Hey Sallie, would you like me to leave some crayons and paper for you to draw on? You know, if you drew a picture or wrote something to us, we would be very proud of it, and we would hang it on the refrigerator for everyone to see.” Then, as if I had really gotten a response from her, I said with a great deal of enthusiasm, “Yes, that sounds like a really good idea, doesn’t it?” I could tell by the look on Tony’s face as he watched and listened to me he thought I’d gone nuts. Not wanting any more looks of disapproval, I told Sallie we loved her and we were really happy to have her in our family.
Later at night, I went upstairs and found some blank yellow paper and a brand new box of crayons. I had put the paper and the crayons on a clipboard and was standing in the nursery with thought that maybe I should write her a note. I picked a red crayon, and on one of the blank sheets of
Over the next ten minutes, we noticed more strangeness. The little wooden ball would occasionally come to a complete stop—not as if naturally slowing down, but stopping somewhat abruptly. For a couple of seconds, it would remain perfectly motionless. Then, for no apparent reason, it would start swinging again in the opposite direction.
Watching the ball, I continued to talk to Sallie and, as I did so, noticed a strange coincidence. Each time the ball stopped swinging, the baby would wake up and stare ahead with what seemed to be great concentration. Within seconds, he would fall back to sleep. Looking back at the wooden ball, we would find it swinging once again. It didn’t take us long to conclude the cats—and the baby—had been observing Sallie’s antics.
Her initial flight above and about the room had entranced the cat’s attention until her efforts were directed to the balls on the ceiling fan and then to the baby. We concluded Sallie was making her presence known. Just like normal children do when you’re trying to talk to them and their attention leaps toward something more interesting. She was moving around. It also seemed as if she was trying to show us she could wake the baby whenever she wanted to.
I was concluding my talk with Sallie when the phone rang. I informed Sallie that after I answered the phone, we would finish our talk. The caller was Barbara. She talked about how interested she was in what was going on at our house and that she really wanted to be sure her interpretation had been accurate. She asked if she could come to the house. At the time, I didn’t sense that her interest was mercenary; she simply wanted to settle her own mind and confirm what she had said to us. While she continued to talk, I told Tony of her request. Since both of us were at a loss as to how we should deal with our little ghost, we thanked her and extended an invitation.
She said she would be in Kansas City the next day for a radio interview and asked if the following evening would be a good time for her visit. Without consulting Tony, I agreed. Before hanging up, I asked if I should say anything to Sallie about the visit. She said, “That might be a good idea.”
Although I was ecstatic about Barbara’s visit, I reminded Sallie of what we had talked about before the phone call. In a much more pleasant tone of voice, I told her about my conversation with Barbara, a very special person who was able to see and hear spirits, and that Barbara would be coming for a visit in two days to try and help us get along and be happy.
While talking, my mind wandered and I realized how nice it would be to have some sort of two-way communication with our little ghost. But how? Perhaps if Sallie liked crayons, she would use them to write to us. Not expecting an answer, I asked, “Hey Sallie, would you like me to leave some crayons and paper for you to draw on? You know, if you drew a picture or wrote something to us, we would be very proud of it, and we would hang it on the refrigerator for everyone to see.” Then, as if I had really gotten a response from her, I said with a great deal of enthusiasm, “Yes, that sounds like a really good idea, doesn’t it?” I could tell by the look on Tony’s face as he watched and listened to me he thought I’d gone nuts. Not wanting any more looks of disapproval, I told Sallie we loved her and we were really happy to have her in our family.
Later at night, I went upstairs and found some blank yellow paper and a brand new box of crayons. I had put the paper and the crayons on a clipboard and was standing in the nursery with thought that maybe I should write her a note. I picked a red crayon, and on one of the blank sheets of
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