I am going to tell you some wonderful and intriguing story you will find hard to believe. .I assure you, it is a true story and you can check it up if you have the time , the nerve and the inclination to do so. Let me warn you that it will take a strong and iron nerve to even begin this story . This may sound at first to be nothing but a wild superstitious tale , believe me it is not. Like the air we breathe I believe that we have always been surrounded by unseen and wonderful spirits and we will still be in the company of these good spirits even in the next millennium.

However, there are many people who do not believe that we are constantly being watched over by the spirits of dear departed, family and friends. The practice and belief of paying respect to the dear departed has been rooted in many cultures since time began. There are therefore many who fear that without the proper respect these spirits will be angered thereby taking vengeance upon individuals families and whole communities. These beliefs are so rooted in society that they have persisted to the present and will persist and will remain part of society even into the next millennium inspire of all our science and technology But I do believe that there are forces and things which even science cannot explain to our complete satisfaction.

Take for example the days after our dear friend Doc died. One night we were minding our own business. After supper we watched the local news and then the world news. Before watching our favorite show of the night, my wife and I, both seemed to hear something like water flushing in the bathroom in the master bedroom A thorough investigation found nothing wrong with any of the fixtures in the bathroom. We, therefore, ignored it. Now this was in the month of November. This incident happened several times in the coming days and soon it caught our attention for some obvious reason. Although we had not told each other , during each of these occurrences both of us experienced an awareness that there was another presence with us each time. The bizarre thing was that we both had the same feeling that our friend, Doc, was with us each time. How could that be? Both of us knew that Doc had passed away and yet we were both sure that Doc was right there with us trying to communicate with us.

Doc was no ordinary friend. He was more like one of the family and we considered him as a member of our family. He was a gentle and a loving soul with the most engaging and infectious smile. He was always ready to be of help to anyone in need; furthermore he had a very dry but sweet sense of humor. Doc always wore a bowtie and that became his own personal trademark Doc and Mins were so alike that folks teased them and called them twins. They would just smile. Doc and his sweet wife, Mins were more like our second parents. They had no children of their own, so we understood how their love was so real, deep, and genuine. Our family loved Doc and his wife, Mins, very much. Throughout the years both of them were there for us through thick and thin and they celebrated every holiday with our family, Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Fourth of July Cookouts, Labor day cookouts, and all other intimate family occasions. They were both there like two loving grandparents when each of our children were born. They continued to be intimately involved with them from birth to college and beyond. They loved our children and showered them with very expensive gifts at all times.

But Doc died before Thanksgiving that year. Naturally he and his wife Mins were expected to have Thanksgiving Dinner with us with all our friends as we had for several years in the past and we were looking forward to a great time with Doc and his wonderful sweet jokes and engaging smile. This was never to be sadly, unexpectedly, and suddenly Doc passed away.

Therefore, after several of these incidents could not be explained even by the plumbers who came to check the situation in the particular bathroom, naturally we tried to overlook the occurrences and ignore the whole thing. To our dismay this was easier said than done since the bathroom continued to flush by itself. This continued until one evening when the flushing occurred and disturbed our sleep.

My wife and I both got out of bed and went to the bathroom to investigate. Suddenly we both felt aware of another presence in the room with us. We actually felt it and then both of us said, “YOU ARE HERE ARE YOU NOT DOC?” as if we were both possessed with the ability to sense something before it happens. It was there and then that we both actually said it out loud that Doc was the spirit with us. We realized that Doc was really with us. And so I did what my mother had taught me long ago, to be strong. So without any hesitation and fear I said, “COME ON DOC WE HEAR YOU. BUT IT IS LATE AND YOU KNOW WE HAVE TO GO TO WORK TOMMOROW. MOREOVER YOU ARE SCARING THE CHILDREN. ABOUT YOUR WIFE, MINS, SHE IS GOING TO BE ALLRIGHT. SHE WILL BE HERE FOR THANSGIVING AND CHRISTMAS LIKE ALWAYS. YOU CAN GO AWAY NOW DOC. DON’T WORRY WE WILL TAKE GOOD CARE OF HER. YOU CAN LEAVE US NOW. OK DOC?”

After this we both went to bed and we never heard the noise ever again. Soon it was that time again. Our plans for the Thanksgiving Family and friends dinner went on as usual and all of us enjoyed the time we had during the get together But though we all missed Doc we saw an air of peacefulness around Mins none of us understood at first. As the festivities progressed, naturally our conversations turned to Doc. We related the bizarre occurrences of the past few weeks. Mins got excited and asked of the exact time of the last occurrence. She would tell us of a strange incident that happened after she returned from the grocery store a few days ago. She unloaded the bags as much as she could carry each time into the house and was very sure there were two bags remaining only to find them inside the house and she was very sure she did not bring those bags of groceries inside. Then she told us that at the same exact time of our encounter she had experienced the same presence of Doc after days of similar strange noises in her house which had stopped the same hour we told her we assured the Spirit that all would be well with her. We asked why she had not mentioned it. Her reply was that she was afraid that nobody would believe her story. She felt so much better after getting this sharing her experience. We did too.

This was a long time ago and we still think about it sometimes. I don’t know what to think now I leave it to you. But I am sure Doc is at rest now and is at peace. He has not bothered us since that night. And as for Mins she came every holiday and any other time she could. We checked on her often and took care of her until she went on to join Doc.