The Ghost That Gretchenn Upshaw Saw Analysis
The Ghosts that Gretchen Upshaw Saw
Gretchen Upshaw is a paranormal investigator who organizes ghost tours for people. Gretchen is among the few who has had extensive experience dealing with ghosts since her childhood. When anyone hears that she is a paranormal investigator, one question is usually asked – ‘When did you start believing in paranormal phenomena?’ Gretchen’s answer is short and to the point: ‘I don’t remember a time when I didn’t’.
Indeed, Gretchen has vivid memories of how strongly and intuitively she sensed the presence of ghosts and spirits even when she was very young. Strange things began to happen to her ever since she moved into a house in San Antonio, Texas. Gretchen remembers vividly her traumatic feelings when she heard that her family was moving into an old house in Thunderbird Lane. As …show more content…
a nine-year-old, Gretchen remembered the sinking feeling in her heart and the tears that sprang up when her mother told her friend over the phone about their plans to make an offer for that house.
A young Gretchen looked up at the ranch style brick house with fear and hatred. The two massive oak trees at the walkway were intimidating. Along with their dog, Tex, the family settled down in that dreary house. When Gretchen’s father was landscaping the backyard he discovered a big headstone. The discovery seemed to be the starting point for a series of sinister and disturbing happenings.
The first terrible misfortune to happen involved the family dog, Tex. As was his habit, he came rushing out to the road to meet Gretchen only to be hit by a speeding car that killed him instantly. Even though the violent death of her pet dog wrenched her heart, the first thought was that it was unfair to blame the house for a road accident. Her parents bought her a kitten some time later to make up for the loss of Tex. Hardly two weeks afterwards, a wild cat entered into the house and went straight to the kitten as if he already knew where to find the kitten and pulled it apart like a rag doll.
Even if the deaths of the two pets could have been coincidental, nothing could explain the mysterious deaths of every animal or bird that entered the compound – the white rabbit that was dead in its cage, the friendly wild blue cat that died in the backyard, the budgie that stopped singing suddenly and the black Labrador that died in the front porch.
Worse still was the invisible presence that Gretchen sensed in the night, when she could make out a shadow streaking past the door and sitting on the bed and making a clear indentation on the mattress before disappearing.
Another incident that haunted her for many years was what happened one night when she went to the kitchen to drink some water. Outside, in the dim porch light, she saw the outline of someone, unmistakably her brother. Gretchen’s brother was 22 years old and had left the house, but there he was standing outside, looking like he was no more than fifteen years old. He was dragging himself to the front porch and his eyes met Gretchen’s and he seemed to be gesturing to her for help.
Gretchen Upshaw was too scared to react. She rushed to her bedroom as fast as she could, wondering if she’d been hallucinating or if it was a dream. In the dizzying silence, she heard her brother’s voice call out her name.
Gretchen wasn’t the only one in the house to experience such things. Everyone had seen the cuckoo clock jump off the wall and seen a grey mist float near the fireplace and found glass bulbs exploding simultaneously in the middle of the
night.
All the experience observing ghosts and terrifying occurrences probably prepared Gretchen Upshaw for a paranormal career. Among her different experiences as an adult, what stands out the most was her experience leading a ghost hunt in Old South Pittsburgh Hospital (OSPH), a former medical location which is currently considered as one of the most haunted places in America.
Gretchen Upshaw feels that her paranormal experience in that place was similar to something one would find in reality ghost shows, except in her case, things began to happen almost immediately. She explains how she’d been touched, spoken to and even visualized movement of furniture and shadow figures and heard phantom knocks on the door.
However, after she returned to her New Orleans home, she had the most vivid, disturbing dream. In the dream, Gretchen found herself walking through a wooded area with a dirt mound and a lean-to. As she kept walking, she found a young man lying on the ground. He was bent in a strange angle and his head was swelling very rapidly. It was so big and bulbous that it made Gretchen gasp in shock. The man looked like he was dying, but he still managed to smile warmly at Gretchen and even introduced himself.
“I’ve done terrible things in my life. I have hurt those who love me and whom I loved,” he’d told her.
All that Gretchen could manage was, “I’m sure you’ve been forgiven and missed.”
Gretchen had woken up feeling confused and full of tears. She remembered the accurate details almost as if she’d really encountered him. Gretchen could visualize his face so well that if she’d had an artistic capability, she could have painted him on a canvas. She was left wondering who it could be and why he’d appeared in her dream until her husband shared a news clip with her. It was about a young man from Tennessee who had died in a motocross accident. A chill crept through Gretchen’s spine when she saw that it was the same man she’d seen in her dream.
Soon afterwards, when Gretchen entered the house she sensed a thickness in the air, as it always was the case in the presence of an apparition. What was even more shocking was the fact that her heavy, massive wardrobe that was originally against a wall had been moved several feet away and stood in the middle of the bedroom.
Terrified, Gretchen checked with her partner to find out if he’d had anything to do with it, even though she knew deep inside that it wasn’t him. After he’d confirmed that he’d not shifted the wardrobe, Gretchen was left feeling tumultuous inside.
Much later, Gretchen and her partner had managed to move the wardrobe back to its original position. She noticed that a ribbon she’d used to hold the wardrobe shut hung in the middle of one of the mirrored doors. Gretchen left it untouched, unsure of what it meant, but when she was back from dinner, she noticed that the ribbon had been tied back as it had originally been done.
Gretchen was sure that whoever was engaging in the deeds was none other than the young man she’d fist seen in her dream. She didn’t understand why he was doing it but she did realize that some things don’t have a clear explanation.
Gretchen Upshaw is a paranormal investigator who organizes ghost tours for people. Gretchen is among the few who has had extensive experience dealing with ghosts since her childhood. When anyone hears that she is a paranormal investigator, one question is usually asked – ‘When did you start believing in paranormal phenomena?’ Gretchen’s answer is short and to the point: ‘I don’t remember a time when I didn’t’.
Indeed, Gretchen has vivid memories of how strongly and intuitively she sensed the presence of ghosts and spirits even when she was very young. Strange things began to happen to her ever since she moved into a house in San Antonio, Texas. Gretchen remembers vividly her traumatic feelings when she heard that her family was moving into an old house in Thunderbird Lane. As …show more content…
a nine-year-old, Gretchen remembered the sinking feeling in her heart and the tears that sprang up when her mother told her friend over the phone about their plans to make an offer for that house.
A young Gretchen looked up at the ranch style brick house with fear and hatred. The two massive oak trees at the walkway were intimidating. Along with their dog, Tex, the family settled down in that dreary house. When Gretchen’s father was landscaping the backyard he discovered a big headstone. The discovery seemed to be the starting point for a series of sinister and disturbing happenings.
The first terrible misfortune to happen involved the family dog, Tex. As was his habit, he came rushing out to the road to meet Gretchen only to be hit by a speeding car that killed him instantly. Even though the violent death of her pet dog wrenched her heart, the first thought was that it was unfair to blame the house for a road accident. Her parents bought her a kitten some time later to make up for the loss of Tex. Hardly two weeks afterwards, a wild cat entered into the house and went straight to the kitten as if he already knew where to find the kitten and pulled it apart like a rag doll.
Even if the deaths of the two pets could have been coincidental, nothing could explain the mysterious deaths of every animal or bird that entered the compound – the white rabbit that was dead in its cage, the friendly wild blue cat that died in the backyard, the budgie that stopped singing suddenly and the black Labrador that died in the front porch.
Worse still was the invisible presence that Gretchen sensed in the night, when she could make out a shadow streaking past the door and sitting on the bed and making a clear indentation on the mattress before disappearing.
Another incident that haunted her for many years was what happened one night when she went to the kitchen to drink some water. Outside, in the dim porch light, she saw the outline of someone, unmistakably her brother. Gretchen’s brother was 22 years old and had left the house, but there he was standing outside, looking like he was no more than fifteen years old. He was dragging himself to the front porch and his eyes met Gretchen’s and he seemed to be gesturing to her for help.
Gretchen Upshaw was too scared to react. She rushed to her bedroom as fast as she could, wondering if she’d been hallucinating or if it was a dream. In the dizzying silence, she heard her brother’s voice call out her name.
Gretchen wasn’t the only one in the house to experience such things. Everyone had seen the cuckoo clock jump off the wall and seen a grey mist float near the fireplace and found glass bulbs exploding simultaneously in the middle of the
night.
All the experience observing ghosts and terrifying occurrences probably prepared Gretchen Upshaw for a paranormal career. Among her different experiences as an adult, what stands out the most was her experience leading a ghost hunt in Old South Pittsburgh Hospital (OSPH), a former medical location which is currently considered as one of the most haunted places in America.
Gretchen Upshaw feels that her paranormal experience in that place was similar to something one would find in reality ghost shows, except in her case, things began to happen almost immediately. She explains how she’d been touched, spoken to and even visualized movement of furniture and shadow figures and heard phantom knocks on the door.
However, after she returned to her New Orleans home, she had the most vivid, disturbing dream. In the dream, Gretchen found herself walking through a wooded area with a dirt mound and a lean-to. As she kept walking, she found a young man lying on the ground. He was bent in a strange angle and his head was swelling very rapidly. It was so big and bulbous that it made Gretchen gasp in shock. The man looked like he was dying, but he still managed to smile warmly at Gretchen and even introduced himself.
“I’ve done terrible things in my life. I have hurt those who love me and whom I loved,” he’d told her.
All that Gretchen could manage was, “I’m sure you’ve been forgiven and missed.”
Gretchen had woken up feeling confused and full of tears. She remembered the accurate details almost as if she’d really encountered him. Gretchen could visualize his face so well that if she’d had an artistic capability, she could have painted him on a canvas. She was left wondering who it could be and why he’d appeared in her dream until her husband shared a news clip with her. It was about a young man from Tennessee who had died in a motocross accident. A chill crept through Gretchen’s spine when she saw that it was the same man she’d seen in her dream.
Soon afterwards, when Gretchen entered the house she sensed a thickness in the air, as it always was the case in the presence of an apparition. What was even more shocking was the fact that her heavy, massive wardrobe that was originally against a wall had been moved several feet away and stood in the middle of the bedroom.
Terrified, Gretchen checked with her partner to find out if he’d had anything to do with it, even though she knew deep inside that it wasn’t him. After he’d confirmed that he’d not shifted the wardrobe, Gretchen was left feeling tumultuous inside.
Much later, Gretchen and her partner had managed to move the wardrobe back to its original position. She noticed that a ribbon she’d used to hold the wardrobe shut hung in the middle of one of the mirrored doors. Gretchen left it untouched, unsure of what it meant, but when she was back from dinner, she noticed that the ribbon had been tied back as it had originally been done.
Gretchen was sure that whoever was engaging in the deeds was none other than the young man she’d fist seen in her dream. She didn’t understand why he was doing it but she did realize that some things don’t have a clear explanation.