I'm generally a skeptic. I don't believe in things that I can't prove exist like alien abduction, ghosts, or the female orgasm. Ok, I might believe in werewolves.
Around Halloween in my sophomore year at college, a couple of girls in my circle of friends (including Carly) told us stories about weird things that happened when they used a Ouija board. They would tell sotries about the spirits they were supposedly reaching through the board. One night, a lamp crashing down onto the board without anyone touching while they used it.
My roomate Charles and I called BS. We were sure that they were just trying to mess with us. You can't communicate with the dead, especially with something that's sold in the same aisle as Monopoly and Hungry Hungry Hippos.
They invited us to watch them use it on Halloween. Charles and I decided that the only way we'd believe the story is if he and I used the board ourselves. We only trusted each other not to move the pointer.
On Halloween, a group of about a dozen of us who were intrigued by the stories met in one of the study rooms in the basement of the dorm. Charles and I manned the board, sitting in chairs facing opposite one another with the board on our knees.
Following the directions, we placed our fingertips slightly on the pointer. I felt stupid asking "Is there anyone there?" Nothing was happening. Right before we gave up I felt a little something, like the pointer was floating slightly above the board.
"Is there anyone there"
"YES"
Ok, that was a little freaky.
We asked questions. We asked a few stupid yes or no questions and the pointer lazily moved from answer to answer. We got about three answers in when the pointer moved to "GOODBYE"
I was still a little skeptical. Charles insisted that he wasn't moving it and acted like he didn't believe me when I said I didn't either.
The next contact was much different. The reaction of the pointer was far stronger.
"H-E-L-L-O"
"Uh, hello. Who are you?"
"N-A-T-J-I"
That wasn't a name that I was familiar with. Again, the reaction of the pointer this time was much different than our first contact. It felt as if we were actually holding the pointer down with our fingertips and if we lifted up our hands, it would fly off the board.
"Where are you from?"
"H-A-I-T-I"
Carol, one of the girls standing around us said, "Ask her if she can see us." So I did.
"Y-E-S"
"If you can see us, what color shirt is Carol wearing." Carol was wearing a red shirt.
"B-L-U"
Blue? We started laughing though we still didn't know who was playing the trick on us. The pointer, however, kept moving.
"-S-H"
Blush. You know, Carol's shirt was kinda a blush red color.
Everyone got quiet.
We asked Natji questions like, "Did you practice Voodoo" (YES) and "How old were you when you died (33). Stuff like that. Each response was quick, sometimes we had to catch up with what she was saying. It was almost like Natji was rushing to respond.
Things really got freaky when the pointer started moving without us asking questions.
"H-E-I-S-C-O-M-I-N-G"
Heis...Heisco? He... is...coming?
"Who is coming?"
"T-H-E-D-A-R-K-M-A-N"
"Who is the Dark Man?"
One of the girls begged us to stop playing, telling us that we were messing around with evil things. I was intrigued though and wanted to know where this was all going.
"M-Y-L-O-V-E-R"
"Why is the Dark Man coming?"
"E-A-T-S-S-O-U-L-S"
Eats souls. Ok, that doesn't sound cool.
Still curious though, we played around some more. Every now and then, she would refuse to answer our questions and state only:
"H-E-I-S-C-O-M-I-N-G"
Eventually, the reaction from the pointer got more furious. Even though we both had only our fingertips lightly on the board, I felt the a strong pulling force coming from below the board itself practically pulling it away. Without a question, the pointer raced across the board, quicker than we could follow. The message stated:
"H-E-I-S-H-E-R-E"
It took us a second before it registered.
He is here.
Game over. Charles and I, along with the entire group, ran outside the room. I've never been that freaked out before in my life.
That night, Charles and I talked:
"Hey, D. Just tell me that you did that. I won't tell anyone."
"I was about to say the same thing. You moved it right?"
"I swear I didn't"
Even years later, Charles insisted that I had moved it. I didn't. I also don't believe that he did either. Especially giving the fact that I felt something in that pointer. The best way I can describe it is by comparing it to the force when you take two powerful magnets and try to push them together and the magnetic force pushs them apart. If he moved it, it wouldn't have that type of force, right.
I'm not saying that we contacted a dead spirit. I don't know what happened. All I know is that something moved that pointer. I felt it.
For awhile, I felt like it was proof that something was out there that we can't explain.
The most rational explanation for these boards that I've heard that somewhat explains what happened is that our muscles sometimes respond unconsciously. That may account for the movement of the pointer but not the coherent messages we received.
I can't explain what happened.
But I've never messed with one of those things since.
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13 comments:
Hi D. I believe you. While attending a german langauge course in a small town in Barvaria, a group of us made a Ouija board ourselves. Our group was composed of people from all over the world most of whom were non english speakers (Korea, Japan, Nigeria, Poland, Sweden und so on). At first it was kind of silly. But it started getting freaky when the answers came in the language of the questioner. It turns out that we were visited by a spirit who called itself Belezebub. I swear I almost shat in my pants. Somehow we were able to end the session and we all went to local disco. The next morning in the commom room where we had played, we found the letter pieces that we had made were spread evenly across the table and each piece had a drop of red wax in the center. The strange thing is that no one can remember ever seeing a red candle. Thanks to that event I still have contact to lots of my fellow participants (the course took place in 1994) and we can now all laugh about it but it is still scary. You are right about that magnetic push feeling. That's the only way I can describe it.
We had a Ouija board when I was a kid that only ever spelled out swear words. It was not very spooky, and I'm pretty sure that was my brother's doing.
Now I've got the heebie jeebies. Thanks D.
My brother-in-law claimed he had a ghost in his house and he would use the Oija Board a lot and some of the stories are insane. I myself have never done it with great results. But it still gives me the willies.
D, I believe you, too. Shit like that scares the hell out of me. I watched The Shining last night. I don't think I'll ever recover.
My cousin told me that back in college (1992, '93 maybe) some people were playing with a Ouija board and when she approached them to watch, it spelled out H-I-C-O-W. She freaked out 'cause it just so happened she was wearing a cow print skirt. Weird.
Yeah, I believe you. I've seen too many freaky things in my life to dismiss other's experiences with the paranormal.
This makes a good ghost story, D. You should consider developing a short story or screenplay or something centering around "The Dark Man: Eater of Souls". He could be the next Freddy or Jason (or, at the very least, the next Leprechaun)!
I'm weirded out by Ouija boards. I could never use one or I'd probably never sleep again.
The problem is that everyone writes scary stories about Ouija boards. We need something fresh and original.
"The Hungry Hungry Hippos game is possessed, I tell you. That pink hippo bit my brother's finger clean off . . ."
I had an unusual experience once with a ouija board. A friend and I were at an antique shop that was acually an old house with a bunch of old wooden sheds in the yard that also had antiques. It was in one of these sheds that we found an old ouija board. We decided to try it out. When we asked if someone was there it said "YES". We asked some other typical questions and got short answers. Then we asked if we should buy the ouija board, it went to "NO" when we asked why it slowly spelled out, "H-O-P-E". Then it left and wouldn't answer anymore questions. We didn't buy the board, but I was fascinated by those last messages.
I had an unusual experience once with a Ouija board. A friend and I were at an antique store that was actually an old house with several old wooden sheds in the yard that also had antiques in them. It was in one of these sheds that we found an old Ouija board and decided to try it. We contacted a spirit and asked some general questions, then we asked it if we should buy the Ouija board. It went to "NO". Then when we asked why it spelled out "H-O-P-E" and left. It was a strange. This was about ten years ago and I have been fascinated by the response sense.
Who knows where to download XRumer 5.0 Palladium?
Help, please. All recommend this program to effectively advertise on the Internet, this is the best program!
Just saying, I used your story [with some creative changes and a citation in the credits] to make a short film, simply because I loved it so much. I entered it in a film festival, and I won. I just thought you might like to see it...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An7BpWr7ggk
I hope you enjoy it because a lot of other people evidently did! Thanks for the inspiration!!!
Tony,
Outstanding!!! I can't tell you how happy I am with this. Excellent work. You've made my day.
D
You know, stories like yours make me never want to use a Ouija board ever.
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