Hello ATS - I'm happy to finally be a member after devouring info from these boards for the last few months.

A bit of background about myself and the experiences that have led me here:

I'm 27 and grew up in small town Ontario (Canada). Three years ago I moved to the West Coast and have really come a long way in terms of personal and spiritual development.

As a kid, we didn't go to church and I wasn't encouraged by my parents in one direction or the other - religion and spirituality were generally not discussed. Early in high school, I got involved with an older girl (score!) who was from a devoutly Christian Mennonite family. I started attending church with her over a period of 2.5 years - so a good chunk of my formative high school experience. We parted ways when she left for university and I stopped going to church, having really only been going to satisfy her anyway.

Shortly after, the first of my grandparents passed away - my grandmother on my dad's side. The night after coming back from her funeral out of town, I woke up in the middle of the night. I remember the time distinctly - it was 3:04am. As I lay in bed, I had what I guess could be called a vision of my grandmother's ghost walking up the steps to our living room and looking at family photos on the china cabinet. I don't know if I would have been able to actually see her ghost had I gone out to look - but the fear in my gut told me yes. I didn't talk to anyone about my experience and eventually forgot about it.

A year or so later, I was visiting a friend at a school out of town. We were going out to a bar and there were a number of people at the house drinking before we headed out. At one point, I was left alone on the back porch of the small student house. The place had a small fenced in backyard with a shed in the back right corner. As I stood there a cat came running up from the alley. I love cats, so I proceeded to pet him and was probably happily ensconced for 5-10 minutes. Suddenly, the cat jumped up and bolted off the deck and around the side of the house toward the street. I felt the hairs on my neck rise as I stood and looked over the backyard. There was nothing apparently there - but in the back left corner of the (dark) yard I could sense something significant. I squinted my eyes and could make out nothing but inky blackness. You know in the summer when you can see heat shimmering and rising? It was the same effect only pure black - yet somehow solid. I don't have the vocabulary to describe what I saw. As I stood there, I began to feel more and more terrified, as if whatever it was was sizing me up. It took all the courage I had to turn my back on it and go inside the house. Again, I didn't speak to anyone about this.

Now here I am, 4 years after that event and in a whole new mental place of acceptance of the unknown rather than fear and denial. My girlfriend of five years and other important relationships have really helped me along the way. Recently, I've been experiencing other strange things that lead me to believe I am opening up to more possibilities and in turn, they are being revealed to me.

I hope to find others who can help me gain further knowledge about the unknown and better understand my own experiences, while offering a fresh perspective and an open mind to the community.

All the best,

regrowth

[edit on 8/3/2009 by regrowth]

Welcome! Thank you for sharing you story and I look forward to seeing you on the boards!!

Welcome. Hope you find what you're looking for.

Hey-

Nice to have you!

I am not only a highly educated individual but I carry with me the knowledge and pain of first hand experience of many and involvement in many situations.

Im glad that you mentioned your story because I was very close to my Grandmother. She was a very devout, holy Catholic women (excuse her for this because she was a Catholic without wiggle room)- yet we had a bond. She used to have visions that would come true. So, after a nap in which I encountered the Devil who left my dream repeating "begith March 11th" (no clue?) and waking up to my entire room spinning around in circles until I collected my bearings, needless to say- she was the first one I called and the only one who took me seriously!
Well, she promised me that when she died she would send me a rainbow to show me that she was safe in 'heaven'. 3 days after her funeral I saw the most beautiful rainbow- of course! I could choke it all up to coincidence but theres more...

The night she died (at the young age of 69 yrs) I was miles away in Florida. I had slept horribly the night before, claiming to my sister how I remember nothing but my Uncle Mike crying (a man which I had never seen shed a tear in my life, and who also happened to be an ordained priest and monsignor) Well, around 7 that evening I started to get ill- I couldnt breath and got weak- I have witnesses - my sister and her friend. Finally I came to and was okay. Only to find out that it was 7 pm when her lungs filled up with fluid from an illness and she had died in her home miles away.

This has left a permanent mark on my mind and soul- yet, unfortunately I have no one to talk to about it that doesnt think Im insane.
Any advice?

Thanks for the warm welcome and for sharing your experience, nowayreally.

It sounds like you were very close to your Grandmother and the powerful experience of her passing was felt by those close to her and open to the energy.

Welcome and good luck.

cool story bro.

open minds are the future.

Waves to the new guy. Hello and welcome!

Thanks for the further welcome!

I had another experience over the weekend that I'm definitely looking for a little open-minded input about. Here's what went down:

Sunday morning, about 10:30am. I had been up for about 30 minutes and I was on my way to lunch with my girlfriend's parents. I left my apartment and pressed the button for the elevator - I live in a high rise building with two elevators. The elevator arrived I remember being pleased because it was the RIGHT HAND elevator door that opened (this is important). I have notoriously had trouble with the left hand elevator (doors opening on unrequested floors, etc). When the door had opened, a girl started to step off thinking she was already on '1'. She quickly realized her mistake and I got on the elevator with her and pressed 'B' for basement. The elevator descended, the door opened on '1' (the main lobby) and the girl waved and got off the elevator.

The door closed again and I reached out to press 'B' one more time. I distinctly felt the elevator descend one more floor. I even felt it settle (up and down) before the door slid open again - to reveal I was still on the 1st floor. I frowned and was a little weirded out, but I pressed the button for B again anyway. Down I went, one more time - the exact same feeling of descending and settling into the lowest floor. This time when the door opened was on the basement floor, but I GOT OFF THE LEFT ELEVATOR. I noticed the difference immediately and my mind sorta exploded as I tried to figure out what had just happened. I'm still a little fuzzy.

Any thoughts on that one?