The Most Reliable Specter

The Most Reliable Specter
A personal thought....

A plain and logical site turns to into a dark and unimaginable fright. You suffer through a temporary blindness that thickens with every brush of your hand. You stand motionless in the hopes that the darkness and gore around you will move on as if you are shielded from it by this thick, dense mist. Your heart pounds and you hold your breathe in every effort to not be seen, heard or felt. Your mind races over reasonable and rational explanations but you are locked away from logic and understanding. You are vulnerable both mentally and physically to beings not of an earthly realm. Fear turns into irrational emotion and you know that “THEY” already understand you are within their grasp.

You ask yourself: is it more important to make sense of this or try to understand that some medical condition is afflicting me? Do you dare tell of the angry, frustrated, and melancholy faces you see? Would you shun those children who are lost and hurt? Overlook the elderly who are still struggling to understand their potential destination? Do I ask if anyone else see’s the family pet who resolved from life ten years ago? What do I say to the man on the battlefield whose clothes are poorly sorted and stained with blood or the wild haired woman who has no understanding that she can not be seen in public in her naked state? Where do they come from? And where do they go?

It’s more than deplorable to know that you can not reach the dead without overcoming and understanding a fear that holds no boundaries and no limits over the living, an eternal struggle that is only bestowed upon a few worthy or unworthy souls. Barriers are lifted in communication with the dead but so must the living consider that they are far from living themselves. A mere shell of human flesh that grows and ages until the soul emerges upon its death. The parasite of life consists of few things to sustain itself but the soul of death lingers without a shred of dignity or moral, with no condition to warrant itself in any code of conduct.

Life creates fundamentalist hosts that carry the seeds of structured learning and understanding based on the human brain and the minds of great thinkers, but death is expelled from the that host and thrust into a world it once knew but is now ignored and eventually forgotten. Is death the extermination of the human soul?  If so, why do the dead linger in such states? Why does the structure of life leave the explanation of the dead so vague and obtuse? Answers and justifications are one in the same and the purpose of communication between the living and the dead is already broken but bridged by those passed on and still mending from beyond the world of the structurally accepted.

Locked away in the darkness and recesses of the mind is the awakening of a being not of flesh and blood but of pure energy. Without the physical, mental and emotional appendages of a human being, souls and spirits of beings who once were; the most reliable specter. 

Unbreakable Bonds - Ryan's Story

Unbreakable Bonds

Ryan’s Story
Lagrange, Georgia

This story is dedicated to the memory of Thomas Ryan Noles and to his mother Kathy Weathers. 

Ryan struggled for many years to overcome addiction. Addictions that would eventually take his life at the young age of twenty eight. His struggles have impacted his family both spiritually and physically and by writing his story, I hope to reach those who are also struggling to overcome addiction and or those trying to understand the spiritual aspect of losing a loved one. I hope that by identifying with this family’s loss, you may find some answers.

Ryan Noles was born on February 8, 1983. His mother, Kathy, was over joyed with the arrival of her baby son. As he grew from an infant into a toddler Ryan was always very close to his mom and even after he got older, throughout his middle and high school years he always had a very special relationship with her. Kathy always kept a close eye on Ryan and he was often the apple of that watchful eye. Ryan was always a bit of a clown and enjoyed making people laugh. His smile was absolutely contagious and as he grew into a young man, Ryan would have many girlfriends and was very much a lady’s man. 

Ryan started using marijuana in his late teenage years, while still in high school. Though he maintained a close relationship with his mother he constantly reassured her he was OK. Kathy and Ryan’s relationship would change dramatically over the next few years and the loyal son she once knew had distanced himself from her. She knew that Ryan was developing a real problem and by the time he was twenty, her worst fears had come true. Ryan was battling a severe addiction to many drugs and though Kathy was determined to help her son, he would not accept her help in his addicted state.

Kathy woke one morning at 3 AM to Ryan screaming. He was begging her not to let him die. He had been vomiting blood after a stomach ulcer ruptured. When Kathy found him she was terrified. The bathroom was covered in blood. She gathered him up and rushed him to the hospital where he spent two days in an intensive care unit. Ryan had lost a lot of weight and was very ill. His addiction was now taking over every aspect of his life and he knew he needed help but didn’t know who to turn to. Ryan found comfort in his family. Especially his young nephew Hunter who brought new meaning to Ryan’s life. Hunter often called Ryan his “BFF” and once Ryan made advances in getting sober, Hunter was the one constant reminder of how important it was to be a better man.

Ryan was determined to get sober. He struggled to get into drug treatment programs due to financial difficulties but Kathy and Ryan both knew without the proper intervention, Ryan might not be able to overcome his addictions. Ryan was able to get some help. However, while getting sober was his first priority, Ryan still battled many health complications. Chronic stomach pain from years of drug abuse had worn his body into a fragile state. Depression was often a side effect of trying to manage the pain and stay sober at the same time. One night Ryan came to Kathy and told her he felt as if he was being spiritually attacked in the home he was living in at the time. Kathy contacted a friend who brought Ryan a crucifix that had been blessed by a preacher in the hopes that it could some how help him fight the demons he felt oppressed him. She hoped that maybe through God, Ryan could find some spiritual strength and Ryan felt very strongly in his heart that he needed to be a better example for his BFF-Hunter and to show his mother he could get better. 

Throughout Ryan’s recovery phase, Kathy noted several unnatural things happening in her home and around her. Kathy was not a skeptical person when it came to believing in supernatural forces but she wasn’t hard-pressed to believe any old ghost story either. Things were changing around her and Ryan and she felt that Ryan may have been dealing with a negative supernatural influence. This was clear to her when she and Ryan had met with the friend, who gave Ryan the blessed crucifix. Kathy was sitting at her desk in her home when suddenly, without warning, everything on her desk was knocked over. It was if someone had taken their hand and pushed everything off her desk. It happened with such force Kathy could feel the presence of something close by. So much that it scared her to even move.

While under treatment Ryan was prescribed several different drugs to help him with depression and pain. However, this would prove to be a volatile mixture and on June 9, 2011, Ryan passed away due to complications from his addiction and a combination of drugs prescribed to him during his recovery. Ryan’s body had lost the fight to survive and no one suffered as much as his mother. Kathy silently knew that Ryan would not overcome his war with addiction but she would never reveal that to him. Her grandson Hunter was also devastated at the loss of his BFF and for many months the family suffered tremendously to grasp the loss of Ryan.

Not long after Ryan’s death, more strange and unusual things started to happen in Kathy’s home. Frequently she would notice things out of order and often she would hear and see things that she hadn’t experienced before. Items like cigarette lighters would go missing from a certain locations and then reappear in the same place later on. Kathy and visiting friends would hear conversations in the house when no one was home. Glowing balls of light would manifest over her head board at night and haunting sounds of her son’s ringtone would come over the television. 

All these circumstances lead Kathy to believe that her deceased son was trying to make contact with her in any way possible. Kathy was still struggling to come to grips with Ryan’s death and so was the entire family but she could no longer ignore the obvious occurrences that were happening around her. Kathy looked into many paranormal investigative teams and remembered that she had contacted a group some years before while researching ghost hunters in the area. Kathy contacted the Alabama Ghost Hunters in an effort to find some answers regarding her situation.

In January of 2012, my team investigated Kathy’s home after an extensive interview regarding her case. All information regarding the events in the case were kept confidential between Kathy and I until the completion of the investigation. This helps avoid any power of suggestion that may occur and allows team members to function without seeking out any one particular phenomenon based on reports. During the first investigation, almost immediately, audio recorders were picking up voices not heard with the naked ear but with specialized, enhanced, audio equipment. The audio specialist from the team was hearing human voices answering the team’s questions throughout the investigation. 

Other audible voices came over the recorders which distinctly say “Ryan” and another that said “tell them”. Audio recordings of this nature are classified by paranormal investigators as EVP or Electronic Voice Phenomenon, which in theory works by allowing a low frequency sound to be picked up by an audio recorder or device. The idea is that not all sounds can be heard or determined through casual listening and by using the technique of recording sounds and playing it back, gives one the ability to determine if any sound or voice was there, that wasn’t heard audibly at the time.

These recordings and a few full spectrum photo’s of a shadow figure captured in Ryan’s bedroom were all collected as evidence in Kathy’s case and while the Alabama Ghost Hunters have concluded that her home has some paranormal activity, the team can only speculate as to who or what is actually causing the phenomenon. Working with Kathy and keeping an open line of communication with established clients is critical in the field of paranormal investigation. The activity is still very much a part of Kathy’s life now and has continued since her initial reports of activity.

It’s possible Ryan is responsible for the activity since his name was heard over the audio recordings collected during investigations. Kathy still struggles to let go of her emotions and the loss of Ryan which may also contribute to the haunting. A gentle understanding between a mother and the spirit of a child has shed some light on the subject to a great degree. Kathy made great sacrifices as a mother and to be there for her children. She fought, cried, hurt and suffered all the years Ryan struggled. She stood by him as any good mother would and made it her personal battle, though it was not her burden to bear. She laid out her heart in a selfless act to defend her son against an enemy neither of them could see. Ryan and Kathy both knew the overwhelming obstacles they would face but they stood fast, together, with the odds stacked against them. They had something that most people in that situation don’t. They had love and they had each other and an unbreakable bond between mother and child that no words can describe.

That bond, forged in love, is endured worlds over by people who believe they have the power to stand together against the worst evils in the world. This is still true for Kathy and Ryan. Although Ryan is no longer with us, his spirit, (alongside so many others) are only reachable through death or other spiritual connection. Mothers connect to their children on a level that is not understood by science or faith. It simply exists and is there. This is why Ryan is still with Kathy today. His spirit stays with her in an effort to do all the things for her that she did for him. Once again reminding her that she will forever be the rock he will reside on. Keeping her close to him so that she knows she will never truly be without him. All while he keeps a watchful eye on her and keeping the promise that he was not able to fulfill in life. He no longer suffers from the demons that plagued him through drugs and addiction. He is no longer burdened by the everyday battles he fought. He can rest easy knowing there is no obstacle he can’t overcome. Along with Kathy, they understand that one day they will see each other again and until that time comes she and Ryan are Ok and can still find peace in knowing that the spirit world really isn’t that far and that the love they have for each other is unbreakable, unbreachable, and undeniably profound. 

Kathy Weathers and her son, Ryan Noles

Murder in a Mill Village

Murder in a Mill Village

Haunted Manchester, Georgia

Manchester, Georgia is a quiet and small southern town much like any other. Established in 1909, in the Appalachian foothills, it was initially a railroad town but grew into a busy mill community. Today, the majority of this small town remains in much the same state it did in its infancy. The bustling Mill Village that once employed hundreds of workers is now silent but the occasional train still makes its way through Manchester. Residents in the old mill village are hospitable folks and enjoy the solitude and nature of the location, but even in solitude, lurks dark and malevolent forces.

While most of this community comes and goes without cause for concern, many are unaware of a brutal and hostile crime that took place here in 1977. The body of Francis Coe was discovered in her Manchester home on January 31 of that year. She had been a victim of a brutal rape and murder. According to documentation, her body was found in a nearly dismembered state. Crime scene reports stated that inside the home, blood was literally splattered all over the home, so much in fact, the area in the home where Francis’s body was found had been soaked right down to the floorboards and foundation of the house.  This was by far, the worst crime scene Meriwether Sheriff’s deputies had ever encountered.

An arrest was made some time after the murder and Eddie Spraggins was indicted and sent to trial. Although he pled insanity, he was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. For many years after the murder, the house where Francis Coe lived was for sale or rent. Many people lived in the home but none stayed for more than a year. Families came and went and the “For Sale” sign resided longer than the actual tenants. People didn’t talk much about the murder but, the paranormal activity in the home was widely whispered and it fueled the rumor mill that the house was haunted.

About a year after the murder, the house was rented and the gentleman living there with his wife and young son started hearing strange noises almost immediately after moving in. The sounds of dragging, footsteps, banging and knocking could be heard day and night. The family was familiar with the murder but not superstitious enough to be bothered by any suggestion of paranormal activity. After six months of living there the family moved abruptly. According to neighbors, they basically packed up and left overnight.

Other rumors started to emerge over the years about the unusual activity of the home. They included the ghost of a walking corpse, so hideous and grotesque that the few that actually reported seeing it became physically ill. in 1982, a woman living in the home was rushed to the hospital due to a heart attack after seeing the manifestation. She made plans to move from the home while she was still being treated in the hospital. Upon her release, she rented an apartment in a nearby town and refused to go back, even to gather her belongings.

Later, attempts were made to update and renovate the home with the hopes that a new image would persuade would-be tenants to take advantage of cheap rent. However, a contractor who was helping appraise the home, said he had an experience that he would never forget. While under the crawl space of the house, looking over the stability of the foundation, he came upon the spot in the floor where Francis Coe’s body had been lying. That spot was still stained with blood and in the outline of a human figure. As he lay on the cold ground, under the house glaring at the blood stained floor boards, he started to feel as if he wasn’t alone. He quickly rolled over onto his belly and flashed his light around, calling out to see if anyone else was there but to his surprise, no one answered. He turned over again in the tiny crawl space and looked at the bloody imprint once more and to his amazement the stain began to move. A dark mass formed inside the stain and morphed into the face of a woman. He was so horrified that he scrambled out from underneath the house and left without even telling the appraiser what he had seen.

For many years after the home sat empty and eventually even neighboring homes would be abandoned due to the rumors. The home is still standing, but just barely, only a few blocks from the old mill. It’s not been lived in for many years and has all but disappeared under heavy vines of Kudzu and rapidly growing Mimosa trees. Nature seems to be slowly devouring the house like a snake digesting its prey. It’s speculation whether or not the old murder house has some how imprinted itself into the ground, much like the blood stained floorboards of the home, but those who believe know that the house is best left alone. Left to be forgotten and left to be forsaken, and left to the angry decaying spirits that resides in it.