It’s that time of the year again! Halloween is just around the corner, love it…. My fave holiday!
Fall weather is here…. Pumpkin spice and everything nice…. Ghosts, goblins, spooks and ghouls… And the ever enchanting witch. Magic is definitely in the air!
I, myself am Wiccan. I practice white magic. So with that being said, I hold a very special place in my heart for witches.
One of my fave songs is a cover by Lana Del Rey titled, “Season of the Witch”. https://youtu.be/zA4OjrpVsiY
Also, I just finished a shadowy sketch of a witch. Added a soft pink for her lips… Kept it simple.
One, two, three and four.
The petals are soft, but they still hit the floor.
Plucked from the bloom, the rose lays bare
in the hands of the jaded without a care.
A bodice draped in elegant lace
defines the figure of Victorian grace.
Staring out the window, vision’s a blur
from tear filled eyes longing for a cure.
Strong is the will waiting to survive,
creating the happiness to make one feel alive.
Suddenly, a love that’s been removed
now comes into view,
a view that’s been long over due.
The faint smell of a cigar quickly fills the
room with no smoke in sight.
Accompanied by a warm, curious feeling,
nothing of fright.
The ghostly vision comes clear
as he approaches her near.
To him she says sadly, “I’ve aged a bit.”
He sweetly replies, “Not in my eyes. I still see you as exquisite.”
Then he caresses her cheek softly and full of love. He adds, “I still see you as my beautiful dove.”
A smile sweeps across her wrinkled face,
so elegant and full of grace.
She whispers, “I love you, my dear for all eternity.”
He nods, “I know, my sweet for our love shall forever be.”
I was a small child, just barely school age when I had my first experience with the paranormal. I’ve never spoken publicly about it until now, not even at my public speaking events nor book signings have I ever brought up the incident of which I’m about to tell you. Yes, I’ve openly discussed my encounters with shadow people, being touched by spirits, my ability of being an empath and also my ability of angelic communication, but never openly discussed my first recollection of a paranormal encounter. Why? Because to many people, it may sound a bit macabre and strange.
Like I said earlier, I was a small child when it happened. A little girl all dressed up in Sunday clothes right after church services were over. The day was sunny and warm, and the church members were carrying on lighthearted conversations as they were walking out of the building. As my family conversed, my attention was oddly drawn towards the cemetery for no apparent reason, which was only a few feet away. This church was a small, country one with not a very big congregation at all. So the atmosphere was safe and there was no cause for concern as I walked towards the graves. The ground had been undisturbed for quite sometime, meaning that there had been no recent funerals to speak about. Yet, I was undeniably drawn to a particular grave for which I had no connection with. The deceased wasn’t a family member, nor a friend. In fact, the individual had been dead for many years prior to our joining the church. But as I neared the grave, I began to detect a very faint smell. It was one that I had never experienced before, quite fragrant and soft. The inviting smell drew me even closer to the peaceful plot.
Now keep in mind that no one followed me and that everyone from the church were several feet away, meaning that the scent from their perfume/cologne dissipated as I walked away from them. However, this new scent grew stronger as I approached the grave. It was so beautiful and intriguing that it made me want to investigate its origin. The headstone was void of any floral arrangements that would give plausible cause for the unexplained smell. So, I continued to let my nose lead the way which made me only inches above the ground. At this point, I was literally sniffing the Earth that was immediately below my nose. Only grass separated me from the dirt. Yet, this inconceivable fragrance had become even stronger. In my innocent mind I started seeing brief images of bones, like I was looking down into the grave below. Was I led to this spot by the deceased individual? Perhaps what I was smelling was the beautiful fragrance they wore when they were alive. Maybe the spirit of the deceased noticed my gift and wanted to connect with me.
I wanted so badly to take my little fingers and dig into the dirt so I could find out more, but was abruptly stopped upon my grandmother’s discovery. And ever since then, every time I see bones, I’m quickly reminded of the beautiful fragrance I’ve never experienced again. The incident still remains a mystery to me, a fascination that I will never forget.
The door cracks open, a light shines through.
Boney fingers appear and I don’t know what to do.
I’m frozen still, trembling with fright.
Been stuck in this room for more than a night.
A frail body emerges with a smell that’s grotesque,
Carrying what might be a meal at best.
“Thought you could eat.” Their voice simply implies.
Then they remove the tray’s cover and that’s what makes me cry.
Before me, a vision so vile,
Causing me to taste my own stomach bile.
My urge to erupt becomes quite clear.
“You don’t like what I made for you, my dear?”
The feeble one asks then becomes enraged.
This four wall prison feels like a cage.
“Why are you doing this?” I tearfully implore.
“Because you are my pet.” They reply while walking out the door.
The sound of locks quickly engage,
Reminding me that I am their hostage.
I begin to convulse and scream obscenities I feel,
Trembling so badly that I wake from this wretched ordeal.
It was just a dream, a nightmare, a fright
That kept me from peaceful slumber all through the night.
If someone gave you a rose, would you admire it for its beauty? Or would you criticize it for its thorns? 🤔 Or, would you appreciate the purpose of the thorns and understand the protection that they provide the flower from harmful predators?
Simple post, but life is all about perception. Have a great day, Happy Friday all you wonderful people!
Child of Light,
Daughter of Darkness,
take heed my beckon call.
Bring forth your sorrow
and cast out your shame.
Look upon your shadow
lay barren on the wall.
Hear the whispers of the midnight hour
and taste the crimson nectar
so sweet, never sour.
Embrace that which you hold so dear.
Even though to many it may bring fear.
Spread out your wings and soon take flight,
for this my darling, is your rightful night.
(~ poem by Sheila Renee Parker)
Get a copy of my novel, The Spirit Within on Amazon!
~ Sheila Renee Parker on Instagram: @sheilareneeparker
~ Art by Sheila Renee Parker available at: https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/sheilarenee-parker.html
More than two decades have passed since the night I played with the infamous Ouija Board. Thinking back, not really sure what was going through my head and what prompted me to attempt such nefarious communication. Perhaps the notion could have been given credit due to the thought of innocent play, but after witnessing a few things, there was nothing innocent proven about it.
It was at night and I was with two others. We were just three teenagers looking for something to do and there were no adults around. So, we lit some candles in the room we were in and also in the room next to us. The atmosphere was all aglow with amber lighting as we readied the spirit board. Once the planchette was placed, we silenced our speech and cleared our minds. With our fingers on the communicative tool, we asked our first question, “is there anyone here?”. Moments passed and nothing happened. We were patient and asked again. That’s when the planchette moved. Even though the movement was slight, it was still quite detected. Of course, we asked each other who was causing the action, but we all vowed that we weren’t responsible.
The room was beginning to feel a bit tense, but we decided to continue. We asked a few more questions like, “who are you?” and “when did you die?”…. the typical questions of curiosity. What we got in response seemed innocent enough. We were told that the spirit was a female who had died many years prior in a train wreck. That’s when I started to feel uneasy because we were at home, way out in the country and there weren’t any train tracks around for many miles.
Then, we asked if the spirit was there to cause us any harm and we were told “no”. After that, we proceeded to ask if the spirit ever thought about coming back as a living person in the form of reincarnation. It replied that it already had done that, meaning that it had already been reborn.
Our hearts raced and the looks on our faces were of shock and confusion, but we continued by asking “who have you been reincarnated into?” It answered with the name of an individual with whom I hold very, very dear…. someone that I knew in fact had not been inhabited by the spirit. We questioned the spirit on how it could have been reincarnated as someone we knew among the living, if they were communicating with us by use of the Ouija Board. A long, awkward pause lingered. There was no response through the planchette, but a candle that was sitting very securely in the center of a table in the next room, all of a sudden fell over, making a loud noise. There was no explanation to how the candle could have fallen because we were all three hovering over the spirit board and there was no one else in the house.
As frightened as we were, we asked the spirit one last question, “did you cause the candle to fall over?” It’s reply was, “yes”.
Immediately, we stopped playing with the Ouija Board and quickly put it away. The remainder of the night we stayed wide awake, too scared to sleep. To this day I don’t know what ever happened to that Ouija Board and I don’t really care, but I do know one thing for certain and that is…… I will never mess with a spirit board ever again.
Get a copy of my novel, The Spirit Within on Amazon!
“Never give up on your aspirations. Sometimes life is funny and can get in the way with simple distractions, but don’t let that stop you. If you have a dream, then go for it. You have the power to make it manifest itself into something fantastic, so mesmerizing that it has the possibility to astonish even the most daring of minds. Dream on and make it a reality.” ~ Sheila Renee Parker
It was nearly eight years ago when we started looking for a house to buy. He and I decided to look at the local listings separately and whatever house we both liked with our separate searches, we would go and look at them.
Oddly, with he and I both separately looking (did not know each other’s choice), we were drawn to the same exact house. Was this particular location, with a house not even twenty years old at the time, calling out to us? Maybe, but whatever it was, we knew we had to check it out.
The land, being barely an acre, was covered by lots of big trees. This 1200 square foot house sat off the road a bit. With its four white columns in the front, the one story brick structure had a certain comforting charm about it. Huge windows that allow in all the beautiful sunshine….. Love!!
We scheduled a viewing appointment with the realtor, who ended up becoming a very dear friend…. actually, more like a family member now. (Southern charm and etiquette have their ways of bringing people closer together.)
The day was a Monday, just after Thanksgiving, when we drove out to the house. As we were nearing the property, barely entering the driveway, we began to feel an energy coming from this place. It was so inviting, which made us want to see it even more. There was a “presence” we couldn’t explain. Our younger son was with us, and he was just as eager as we were.
As we approached the house, the realtor standing there with his warm smile, welcomed us inside. Like I mentioned, the house is barely 1200 square feet so it didn’t take long to view it. The open floorplan has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. The stained glass lighting fixtures in the kitchen made me squeal like a little girl because I immediately fell in love with them. That made the guys laugh at me. I told them it was a “girl thing”. Lol
The location is right outside city limits, yet close enough to everywhere and only nine miles from the beach! It’s quiet and the neighbors are awesome.
After purchasing the home, we had to do several things… paint the interior, fill in places in the sheetrock where previous residents had hung photos and other decorations on the walls… those types of things. As we did these, we could feel the presence of something otherworldly, like being observed. And occasionally, hearing and seeing things. Like one time, I was walking into the master bathroom and to my right, just in my ear (and I was home alone), I heard a male’s voice faintly say, “Hey”. I turned my head and couldn’t find anyone. Other times, shadows seen out of the corners of our eyes. A strong female presence has been felt many times, an older lady who seems to be the observer, in my opinion. And a few times recently, I have seen a man wearing a light blue checkered shirt also observing me.
However as crazy as all this sounds, nothing malevolent has ever been felt. We have paranormal investigative equipment and have conducted some sessions to communicate. Our findings have proven conclusive. We feel that our home is a transient spot for spirits to come and go. I believe our dog has even picked up on things as well because he has made certain gestures that have validated our belief. And being a psychic and Empath, I can’t discount what I “feel” and “know”.
SHEILA RENEE PARKER