Here's my mother's story... Some of us enjoy reading ghost stories or like to sit and listen to old tales. After sitting with a bunch of friends or family members, telling stories or exchanging experiences, how many of you actually fell asleep with the light on or were too afraid to go to sleep? But then there are those individuals who don't believe. As for me, I am a true believer. Why? Because as a young girl many horrible things have happened to me and my family. There is this one encounter that really scares me, even now, thirty-some years later. It was a normal night, like any other. My older sister (13) and I (11) had been to my cousin's house visiting. But one particular night we had stayed longer than usual. We started to walk home at about 9:30. We took the same path that we always had. Walking past the large wooden gate, it was darker since all the street lights are behind us at this point. Passed this wooden gate, there is nothing but dessert with cactus and brush. About half way from the gate to our house, there's a dry, shallow ditch that we always cross. As soon as we got across the ditch, my sister and I heard dry leaves and twigs being crushed behind us. Something terrifying came out from behind the bushes. My sister and I looked at one another but never spoke a word. She must have seen the same thing and at the same time because we just froze in our tracks! There standing to the left of us was the most horrible looking beast! With a red glow on and around it's body, it stood on its four legs about 3 to 3 1/2 feet tall. It had huge evil-looking paws and its eyes were fiery red with spinning colors! It had an ugly grin on its face with huge fangs and horns on its forehead. Its dark bat-like wings stretched out. After looking at this gargoyle looking beast, I ran as fast as I could to my house. I left my sister behind me. I just wanted to be safely inside my home. As I went into my house with my sister behind me, we cried hysterically and told our parents what we had seen. My father just kept telling us that it was probably just a dog. We knew it wasn't. The following morning, we took our father with us to the place where we had seen this creature. Once there, we saw huge tracks with big claw type paws coming from behind the same bush. The trail seemed to have come from behind the bush about 2 to 3 yards and then disappeared. Whatever that beast was, it was gone for good. But never gone from my mind. For all of you non-believers, this my friends is a very true story. My sister and I to this day will tell you again and again what was lurking in the darkness that cold night.
Jays note: This is another great story from Cindy.