So this past week, I attended a meeting for the NJ Ghost Hunters Society. The topic for this month was pets and the paranormal. It made me start thinking about the night that I lost someone special. The night my Dad passed away.

Just after I left for college in 1991, my mom adopted a Dalmatian, Sheba, from the local animal shelter. Abused by previous owners, Sheba became Mom’s crazy companion because Mom was the only person this dog trusted. She had a few sweet moments here and there with the rest of the family.

The night I am referring to, I went out with friends. I really don’t remember where we went, but I do remember that I was dropped off at home a little after midnight. Since I was the last one in, I went about to lock up the house and turning all the lights off. (Note: I never liked doing this, because I always had paranormal experiences in the house especially at night.)

When I found my way to the foot of the stairs, I noticed that Sheba was still sitting on the couch. She looked happy to see me. Thinking this was odd because she always went to sleep in my parents room, I started calling her to come upstairs, she refused.

Not wanting to leave the dog by herself overnight, I bribed her to come upstairs with treats. After 20 minutes of coxing, she slowly followed me up the stairs. Each step towards the top she crept a little slower. Once she reached the last few steps, she almost knocked me over as she bolted into my room.

Once in the bedroom, it took me several minutes to get her to lay down and fall asleep. Roughly 45 minutes later, I woke up and noticed Sheba staring across the room. I had a feeling that someone was there, but it wasn’t intrusive or frightening. Unlike my usual sleeping pattern, I went back to sleep but  the dog to my knowledge never settled back down. Another 30 minutes went by and that is when my mom screamed from the other room. Instantly, I knew what had happened and who it was who paid Sheba and me a visit.

My theory is that Sheba knew that Dad was ready to cross over to the other side. She also knew that he had visited my room to say his good-byes. Although, I wasn’t aware of what was happening, I did recognize that there was someone standing in my room that July morning.