
Belief in the paranormal has long been a polarizing topic.
Some people absolutely swear by the existence of life after death, citing all kinds of experiences and articles that supposedly attest to the presence of ghosts and spirits swirling around all of us.
Others, though, couldn't be bothered by the whole idea. They refuse to entertain stories about interactions with the undead. They find any rational explanation possible to explain what actually happened.
But there is a third group. These are the people that were once naysayers, but began to believe when they had an experience of their own.
When it happened to them directly, no amount of rationalizing could make them conclude anything other than a total acknowledgment that the paranormal is out there, and it's moving.
People who came around shared their experiences on Reddit.
EwokalypseNow asked, "Skeptics of Reddit, what moment in your life convinced you about the existence of ghosts/the afterlife?"
Plenty of people discussed the times they encountered fallen loved ones after their deaths. They couldn't believe when they felt a familiar presence, voice, or even physical feeling.
That Smell
"I lost my cousin to a tragic car accident. I hadn't seen him in about 5 months prior to the Accident. I was in class when it happened and I sensed his favorite perfume. It felt like he was standing next to me in class for about 30 minutes."
"When I got out of class, I had a bunch of missed calls/txt msgs snd voice mail from various family members who were trying to inform me of his death. This was five years ago and I still sense the perfume whenever I think of him. It makes me smile, even now."
-- afspoty
Last Ditch Effort
"Me and my gf had an elderly friend who got sick and died rather quickly, my brother called the next day and asked if Ron was ok?"
"My brother had a vivid dream of him in the hospital, he knew what room number he was in, Ron told my brother to take care of his diabetes."
-- Casegreen222
Stay Away
"My (then) partner's sister passed away and the power went out twice at her viewing. After a few days, we went to her apartment to gather her things and we kept encountering minor inconveniences on the way.. enough so that her mom said 'I don't think she wants us to go today'"
"five minutes later, flat tire."
A Final Goodbye
"A few days after my mother had passed away I was at the park with my boyfriend at the time and my mum's little dog. I had just let the little guy off-leash to go for his run when out of nowhere I had this overwhelming feeling of being enveloped by the most absolute, pure love and comfort. It felt like my mum was all round me, very hard to explain but almost like when you hug someone and you just feel them and their energy surrounding you."
"I felt completely at peace and had this resound feeling that everything would be alright. I rationalized my experience by telling myself it was just my grief over missing my mum so much and went about my day as usual without telling anyone (other than my partner who was with me at the time and didn't share my experience)."
"The next day I was at home with my older brother; the previous days events completely forgotten by now. We were hanging out in his room when, of course, the topic of mum came up."
"Him: This is gonna sound crazy but I had the weirdest thing happen yesterday afternoon, outta nowhere I just felt completely at peace and like she was here with me"
"Me: *just about cut him off mid-sentence* That's not crazy, I had the exact same thing happen to me yesterday too!!"
"Turns out we had both 'felt' our mum and the feeling complete love and comfort at the exact same time. To this day I don't have a rational explanation for it. My brother and I hadn't spoken to each other at all the day it happened, and the following day was the first time we sat down to chat."
"I like to think it was our mum coming to say one last goodbye and let us know we were gonna be okay"
-- DespicableCi
Other people didn't focus so much on the ghosts they knew. Instead, they touched on their encounters with the unknown spirits that, for whatever reason, chose them.
Free Babysitter
"When I was a baby, we lived in a very old, creaky house. My mum was half convinced that it was haunted as small things, toys, medicines, and pieces of jewelry kept going missing. Sometimes she swore that I was interacting with thin air. She thought that perhaps it was a mischievous child ghost."
"One night, my mum put me to bed, she gave me a blanket and a pacifier, and left the room once I was asleep. An hour went by and I was awake and crying. She came in to soothe me and found that my pacifier was missing. She thought I spat it out or flung it out of the cot."
"She searched the room, pulled the cot apart, shook out all my blankets, checked my clothes and could not find the pacifier. Mum, probably sleep deprived, decided she was going to scold the ghost."
"She put me back in my cot, left the room, closed the door and in her best mum voice said sternly 'that is ENOUGH. You give that back RIGHT NOW.' She waited a few moments, and I stopped crying. Mum came to check me again."
"My pacifier was back in my mouth."
Haunted Highway
"I never believed in any ghosts or paranormal sh** until i saw something that couldn't be explained by anything else. Theres an old dirt road i take sometimes it passes by a really small cemetery, like 10 gravestones, that sits unfenced at an intersection on the road."
"One night while driving home in the middle of the winter i saw a naked old man dancing at the stop sign kitty cornered to the cemetery, he was so thin his skin looked like it was tightly wrapped around his bones, and he had this sad look on his face despite his lively movement."
"I thought i was seeing things, until i saw him again in the spring. I was driving down the same road at night going about 120km/h when he slammed on my car window with his fists, i swerved into the middle of the road and then back into my lane. Theres no way a person could've been at the same speed as my vehicle, yet i saw him clear as day."
"I pulled over got out of my car and looked around with a flashlight to make sure there wasn't someone or something there that i didn't see. Nothing. I went home a bit on edge. The next morning in the same spot was a fresh dog carcass with its head missing. I don't drive down that road at night anymore."
-- undeadpimp69
Hearing From Afar
"2000s, laying down to nap mid day, drifting off at the edge of sleep, and suddenly I hear a SCREAM that jerks me wide eyed awake, startled scared shitless, and has me looking inside & out of my empty apartment, it was freaky, but when I found no 'screamer,' I assumed I just had a weird dream/REM brainfart event even though I was just drifting off to sleep.
"Then my fiancee calls me from her car and starts chatty chatty chatting while I'm still getting my head straight, and when she pauses for a breath I ask 'Hey.. um, You didn't happen to just scream really loud, did you?....' She says, 'Well I did a minute ago, this guy driving was being a jerk and I was super aggravated and I just screamed.... Why?' - She was miles away."
"I'm a skeptic. I had a couple of weird experiences that I don't know what exactly happened. It's weird, unknown, I don't dismiss it, but I don't say it was a ghost, spirit, or telepathy either. It's still more reasonable to assume the events were a strange confluence of naturally occurring events."
-- fanamana
And for some reason, there were several stories that involved dogs.
In some, the dogs themselves were haunted. In others, the dogs were the ones who first noticed the presence of something beyond.
Still Prowling Around
"We had to put my 15 year old dog to sleep less than a month ago. We have wooden floors at our house and his nails always made a little clicking sound against the floor."
"I've heard him walking around the bed twice since he passed."
A Reason Why
"Our dog died a year ago. We buried him in the garden with some nice flowers 'covering' the burial so no one really notices, but we know."
"A week after we buried him, a robin came by. We never noticed it in the past, and now from time to time the robin shows up."
"Unlike most birds in the wild, this robin comes and sits very close to our patio where all other birds stay in the garden and swoop away when we get near or go in the garden. This specific robin doesn't show fear and it feels like it comes from time to time to say hello, hang around for a couple of minutes, then leaves."
"My girlfriend is kinda convinced it's our dog reincarnated coming to say hello once in a while. Personally I don't believe in afterlife ghost or whatever. Dead is dead. It is all in the mind."
"She is the same way, but in this case we just like the idea of the robin filling up the gap our beloved dog left behind. Just makes shi**y things in life more bearable."
Chihuahua Bait
"I was sick and home alone one day, for context I had a room with a closet with no doors. I was chillin with my Chihuahua, Tasha, and suddenly hangers started flying out of the closet."
"Then we would hear something in the other room so she would run out there to bark and then hangers would start flying again. It was luring the dog out of the room!"
"Luckily my grandma lived right next door so even tho I was sick I packed Tasha and I up and ran over there."
-- ke1-8ey
Perhaps this list didn't mean much to you. Maybe you have a reason to explain each and every one.
But have your head on a swivel in case something ever comes your way.
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Sometimes you only need to experience something once, to know it's a never again situation.
I always say, try everything once.
Well, now that I'm older, a caveat to that is... try it all within reason.
How many things have we all walked away from saying the one time experience will suffice?
In fact, knowing when to say no is one of life's wisest choices.
Redditor Croakied wanted to discuss the times we've all said... "once was enough!" They asked:
"What is one thing that you will NEVER do again?"
Love. Did it. A few times. Moving on.
Stay Still
"Jump off a moving train."
DenseDriver6477
"My dad used to jump on a train when he was little to go to school. He broke his nose like twice doing it. He also would not recommend."
Darphon
“vaportini”
"Smoke alcohol. Me and my friends bought something called a 'vaportini' in college where you could pour alcohol into a bulb and after low heat separated the alcohol from the liquid, you could inhale it thru the glass straw you inserted into the bulb. Basically you got drunk directly into your bloodstream/brain and it never hit your stomach."
"If you did too much, your body wouldn’t make you vomit or something, there wouldn’t be a simple self regulation/safety measure. You’d just get alcohol poisoning. Felt very dangerous, the drunk wasn’t a regular drunk feeling. We used it once and were like okay, never again. I’d be surprised if you could still buy it, although it would be incredibly easy to replicate at home."
michelangelho
It’s heartbreaking...
"Fall in love with a drug addict."
Rains_Lee
"Good call, don’t do it. The drugs will always come first. Can’t go out unless their 'ok' with how much drugs they have and money left over if any, cant make love unless they have their fix for the night and even still it never feels normal, can’t trust them after the lies to get drugs and the manipulation they put you through, and you can’t change them no matter how much you try and wish they would. It’s heartbreaking."
Cvilla411
More me time...
"Give up my life for work. F**k going the extra mile for a place that doesn't value you and pays you crap even though you go the extra mile for them. You have 1 life with only so much precious time to enjoy it and slaving away at some job is not worth it. Do what you can to reduce your workload and find better employment, or hell try to change the working conditions at your current job to improve things for everyone if you can."
Mrhappytrigers
Well Obvi...
"Donate a kidney."
ToffieMonster
"Well, you could donate the remaining one. You just won’t be around to say anything about it."
shavemejesus
This is definitely list I can relate to. No thank you on a lot of this!
I Quit
"Smoke cigarettes, it's been two years since I quit."
SuvenPan
Forget It
"Climb mount Kilimanjaro. Toughest thing I've done and it's not worth it. I'm all about tough treks and camping but to put yourself under tough conditions and suspectable to altitude sickness only to get to the top for 10 minutes for a picture. No thank you."
Monks_
"I agree, it was memorable. Once was enough for my husband and I. Thankfully we stayed at American style hotel run by the US Navy with a hot tub and bar. Alcohol was definitely needed after all that."
Whatsherface112
I'm living alone!
"Sign a lease with a stranger without hanging out with them a few times beforehand. My past roommate experiences in college were terrible. Roommates either ignored me, hosted parties til 3 AM on weeknights, made the house the hangout and drug-den for them and their buddies. Meet up once and they'll put on an act for you. If you can, try to see how they act drunk or frustrated."
"Try to hang out with their buddies too so you can see the type of people who could be coming into your future place of residence. As soon as I can afford it, I'm living alone! Now, I investigate a potential roommate's social media and hang out at least twice before signing a lease with them."
fleursdefer
Stay Away
"Take back a cheater. Know your worth my brothers and sisters."
santichrist
"Ughhhhh going back and forth on this one. My boyfriend of 5 years has cheated on me. Several times, actually but says he’s really changed and is ready to settle down and wants me to move in with him. I’m on the fence. So they never change???"
madlecroy
Sleeptime
"Take a laxative and sleeping pill at the same time."
karmaredemption
Once, twice, three times... I'm out. Bye.
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People Imagine How They'd React If Their Significant Other Wanted To Sleep With Other People
There is an age old question that has been getting more traction surrounding sex for partners the last decade or so.
And that is... "is just one enough?"
Were we really meant to only be with one person forever?
There are so many flavors to taste.
What if your partner wants more cookie dough with your strawberry?
Redditor Pineapple-Status wanted to hear everyone's thoughts on opening the bedroom to others. They asked:
"What would you do if your long term SO suddenly wants to have sex with other people?"
I say I'd be ok with it, but I'm remembering my last relationship and I feel like I'm not a "put my $ where my mouth is type" on this issue.
Bye
"Wish her well and spend the next 2 years getting myself back to a place where I am ready to get hurt again."
wickedblight
It's Time to Roll On...
"Personally I would leave them."
"I think they're the ones leaving you. I don't think the relationship changes at that point; I think it ends. If you have a monogamous relationship, they are telling you they want to end that. They might be suggesting starting a new, non-monogamous relationship, but that is a separate thing. The original relationship is over."
octopoddle
ethical non-monogamy...
"OP, it's no different than anything else they want: you either agree and stay together, disagree but stay together, disagree and break up, or even agree and break up. What you're talking about is called 'ethical non-monogamy.'" The seminal book to read is called The Ethical Sl*t."
"It basically boils down to be whatever you want, just don't lie about it. The tricky thing is that this is something that was not present before, but is present now. So it's a potential fork in your road. If you're against it, it's up to your SO to decide if sex with other people is more important to them than a life with you."
Tokugawa
a different story...
"I think it depends too how intently they're interested. If it's a thing they bring up because they're curious but it's not a dealbreaker for them, I'm fine with that even if I don't want to proceed. A solid relationship involves open communication, and it'd make me happy if my partner trusted us and our bond enough to voice that curiosity with me."
"If it's something their heart's absolutely set on, then it's a different story. Either way, it's kind of strange to me how these posts always assume simply asking your partner how they feel about opening the relationship means they're now wholey invested in the poly lifestyle and they'll resent you or cheat if you say no."
donkeynique
Others
"Happy that we have common interest, sad that it's different 'other people."
i_lick_icicles
Sex is always an issue. Remember when it was just fun?
Mine
"Leave her. I’m far too possessive and jealous to be able to mentally accept polyamory. If she has a desire to be with other people I’m not going to stand in her way but I’m not going to be there when she gets home either."
Thiek
Not Me...
"Break up. My parents were poly and it's just not for me. I've been honest with every relationship I've been in that I'm not interested in any type of open relationship. If they want to be with someone else that's fine but we'll be over. My husband is aware of this and on board (and has been for over twenty years!). So if he came to me with this yes I would be heartbroken but I'm not willing to budge on this and it would be the end of our relationship."
GoldDustWitchQueen
Let's Talk
"Counseling time! We're married. I'm chronically ill (stage 4 breast cancer) and have no libido. We try to make intimacy work, and obviously in that case it wouldn't be working. So. Time for a pro to sort out the marriage, and possibly a sex therapist for me."
insertcaffeine
Awkward Positions
"I’ll put myself hypothetically in this position. My partner and I only want each other. We’ve made this abundantly clear to each other. However, if she came to me with desire to open our bedroom and she wanted to sleep with people outside our marriage."
"I would simply express how I vehemently do not an open bedroom and that it would kill any desire I have to want her, be with her, love her, etc. Our couple dynamic has been working well through our ups and downs. Involving some stranger in the ONE thing I find most sacred with my partner is the best way for me to lose any interest or passion for the relationship."
RedFlaim
Farewell
"Break it off, because they definitely already have someone in mind and you telling them no won't change the fact that they were only one step away from following through with it."
Caressticles
Well it feels like a lot of people still believe in one partner, happily ever after. Good for y'all. But big props to these couples who have open and honest conversations about their wants and needs.
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Many of us sometimes fantasize about what we would do to our worst enemies, especially in the moments when they're actively making our lives worse.
While most of us would never actually do any of the things that we contemplate instead of screaming at that super annoying person at the office, we do get pretty creative with the ideas.
Redditor take_me_there_ asked:
"What WOULD you wish on your worst enemy?"
This One Would Hurt
"A conscience. Let her realize the horrific things she’s done."
- Jenny010137
"Seriously. Introspection, self awareness, and empathy are traits that would improve a lot of sh*tty people."
- el_muerte17
"Oh I wish I had thought of this one. If my enemy had a conscience, wow life would be much different."
- Shelbysouth43
No Pearly Whites For You
"I’d like all their teeth to turn really yellow and stay yellow no matter what they do."
- toothfixingfiend
"What did I ever do to you?"
- Spideredd
"I don't even know you! Give me back my enamel!"
- AngryMustache9
Everything You Own Is Orange Now
"Permanent Cheeto fingers. Just orange cheese dust getting on everything."
- cocoapuff1721
"This has to be one of the most evil things I ever heard, yet absolutely hilarious."
-Merk0411
"The Midas Touch: Snack Edition"
- MaryVenetia
Ouch, But Forever
"Stubbing and breaking their toe and right as it’s about to be done healing it happens again over and over for the rest of their pitiful time on this hell we call earth."
- No-Bee-2971
"Sisyphoot"
- Alpha_6
"More of a Toemetheus imo"
- PykeTheDrowned
Self Reflection
"For them to realize how big of an a-hole they are."
- mayhemanaged
"Same for me. The trouble is mine probably knows what a tremendous a-hole he is, and just doesn't care (it's what defines him, is his outlook more than likely), so, give mine a conscience as well, he undeniably lacks one."
- RhoadsOfRock
"a crushing moment of self realization is something that can destroy you mentally. I wish that on them."
- chancetodream
Bury Them Under A Mountain Of Minor Inconveniences
"Always being hungry two hours after eating no matter how large the meal. Slow internet. Traffic jams no matter the location. Self doubt. Allergies. Favorite shows spoiled."
"Nothing major enough to be life altering but constant, low grade inconveniences that wear on your soul every day."
- I_Love_Small_Br**sts
"Every bite of food they eat/drink they drink being slightly the wrong temperature."
"Coffee? Warm but not hot. Cola? Cool, but not cold. Muffin? Ever so slightly frozen."
"Not enough to ruin their life, but just enough to not quite have full enjoyment of anything.."
- HappiHappiHappi
They'll Never Be Able To Use Their Computer Again
"Quick scan with McAfee on their computer."
- halflife_3
"You f**king monster."
- Orion_2kTC
"The constant pop-ups from McAfee is too far."
- _Land_Rover_Series_3
That's A New Level Of Evil
"Bed bugs."
- thrawn1825
"Currently dealing with bed bugs, and I can absolutely confirm this is the kind of thing I would wish upon my worst enemy. It is miserable and painful, and I've tried everything to get rid of them at this point."
"I would easily wish this upon my worst enemy, x10."
- ArbitrarilyStagnant
"Oh hell no, you went there... Hopefully they aren't living in an apartment complex or you've cursed everyone in the building."
- expect_less
Well of course I know him. He’s me.
"$100,000. I sure could use it."
- Sparklesperson
"'It’s no surprise to me I am my own worst enemy'"
- FishyVonFishenHymer
"Lol I thought this was that deep sh*t like 'pray for those you resent to have all the things you want in life….' Then I realized."
- No-Chipmunk9527
Forever Constipated
"That they can never have a satisfying poop. They always feel like they have to go to the bathroom and when they do nothing comes."
- [User Deleted]
"Wow. That's evil. Always feeling the need to pee would be good (as in horrific) too."
- ipakookapi
We definitely don't recommend implementing any of these plans (not that most would actually be possible), but here's some new ideas for the next time you're stuck in a meeting with your most annoying coworker and need a little fantastical escape.
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I grew up poor, and I remember the little things that made me smile when we just happened to have enough that week.
The little things that a truly rich person would not think twice about.
Ah, the luxury of it.
What spells luxury for you?
Redditor ConAir161057 wanted to compare notes about the things in life that feel like items only money can buy. They asked:
"For people who grew up with little money, what always felt like a luxury?"
New clothes. I had so many hand me downs and thrift store clothes... new seemed like a dream.
Anxiety
"After growing up in a home where every unexpected problem was a financial emergency, my idea of wealthy became 'I just want enough money that if something breaks I don't get anxiety about how to deal with it.'"
Obiwan_ca_bl**me
Literature
"Getting to buy something from the scholastic book fair."
Rich*itch3232
"My school, at the end of it a bunch of books were 'donated' and then spread out on a table in the library. We all got to go pick one book. So even if kids didn’t get to purchase a book, in the end they had a chance to still get a book. It’s actually how I got my first Harry Potter book. Was a cool idea for any school staff or parents active in their kids’ schools."
glass_pillow
Christmas
"Getting new clothes at Christmas from relatives. I don't know if that is exactly a luxury or the kind of answer you are looking for, but we never had a lot of money when I was in middle school. I went an entire year wearing the same pants everyday. The funny thing was my parents didn't even buy them for me."
"I got them for Christmas from my Grandparents. All the kids use to give me so much sh*t for wearing the same pants everyday. I always told them that I had 5 of the same pair which made me feel good inside and kind of made them ease off even though I know they didn't believe me."
"I remember I fell on the school bus one day and the jagged floor cut a hole right in the knee cap and the panic that went over me was just insane. It was one of the worst feelings of my whole life because I knew that I didn't have any other pants to wear and that now all of the kids in my school were going to know that I only had 1 pair. Needless to say I could not wait for the last month of school to end."
themagicman_1231
I'm Away
"Summer camp, or basically any school trips that had to be paid for. At my school the kids who couldn't afford to go on trips that happened during school hours still had to come to the school, we just sat in a room and did extra work like it was detention."
Helpful_Yams
"I was lucky. If you taught at the day camp your kid could go for free. That was just day camp though not sleepaway camp. My mom found a camp teacher who had no kids of his own and he signed me up as his kid so I could get free day camp. Did that all through elementary school."
randtcouple
Big Deals
"Going out for pizza was a big deal. Those free mini pizzas for reading books were huge."
Shroom4Yoshi
Food is always an issue when you're broke.
Damage
"Being able to turn on the heat in the cold and pay a professional to fix damaged appliances, plumbing, and other issues."
Liggettef
Spoiled
"When my grandma would come pick me up and spoil me. My parents didn't have much money and were addicts so when my grandma would come get me I would come back with new clothes, video games, toys, etc. I used to think my grandma was rich but she actually just had a stable income."
nawlepen
"I was in this position when I was younger. I always thought my grandma had SO much money… but all she did was go to work everyday. Always made sure I had clothes and all my school supplies. I miss her pretty bad."
Keywork29
Water
"I am from a small island in the Pacific. While I mostly still take cold showers, I have always felt that a hot shower is the finest luxury one can experience. I had my first hot shower when I was 22 years old and I can never forget it."
FSMPIO
"This is the kind of luxury I think people take for granted, I always avoided showers in the winter as a kid since most of the time they where cold showers and the temperature here was around 12c° during those times."
PowerfullDio
Showerware
"Towels. Honestly, I was almost 10 When I realized people didn’t just put back on their dirty clothes after a shower because my family was so large (12 kids total including myself) and extremely poor. I thought towels were just for hotels or were maybe a prop on television. I went to a friends house and she asked for my help folding her towels. I remember laughing and thinking she must be rich."
"Long story short, I wasn’t sure which way to fold the towels, and begged my mom to buy them after I revealed that my friend, Simone, had them. She bought a box of used ones from a local auction and I walked around with them on my head feeling like a frigging empress after that, even though—-let’s be clear… these were second hand towels!"
shakezula1025
Or BK...
"Grew up poor and when I was a kid I used to think you were rich if you had a dishwasher and a millionaire if you had one of those refrigerators that have a button for ice. McDonalds was also a luxury, a couple times a year on our birthdays."
chinderellab*tch
Everyone should have access to all of these things. Why is life unfair?
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