HALLOWEEN PAJAMA PARTY SEANCE

This is a true story of a Halloween Pajama Party that my cousin Gina attended in the early 1970's:

Gina and several of her high school girlfriends went to an overnight Halloween pajama party at the country farm home of her best friend, Sarah. There were eight girls altogether and they spent the night talking about boyfriends, eating popcorn and telling spooky stories until well after midnight.

One of the girls, Donna, came up with the idea to have a candlelight seance to see if they could contact a Halloween night spirit. This idea frightened several of the girls and they wanted no part in trying to contact the dead. Donna and three other girls (Gina, Sarah, and Jenny) decided they would go ahead with the seance but would go to another room to do it.

They grabbed a big candle, lit it, and attached it with melted wax to a small plate. The four girls then headed into the upstairs bathroom at the end of the hall. The bathroom was small and decorated in true 1970's fashion; one wall was covered from floor to ceiling with alternating, 12-inch squares of cork tiles and decorative mirror tiles stuck on the wall in a checkerboard pattern.

Donna sat on the edge of the bathtub facing Sarah, who sat on the floor rug in front of the cork and mirror wall. Gina sat on the floor in front of the closed door facing Jenny who sat on the lid of the toilet seat. It was close quarters in there, but all were gathered around the burning candle and excited to get started with the seance.

Gina turned off the light and the girls stopped giggling, becoming serious as they joined hands around the flame. Looking around the circle of girls, Donna said, "Who do we want to try to contact? I don't know anybody who's died lately." The girls looked at each other and then Sarah said shyly, "Well, my Grandma Louise died two years ago right here in our house. She lived with us for a while and had a bedroom downstairs. We all miss her terribly. We could try to contact her." The girls all agreed.

Donna told the girls to hold hands, close their eyes and repeat after her. "We are here calling for the spirit of Sarah's Grandma Louise. Grandma Louise, if you can hear us, give us a sign." The girls repeated after her, but nothing happened. Donna tried again saying the same words. The other girls repeated the call for the spirit of Sarah's grandma. Nothing.

Then suddenly, Donna screamed loudly and fainted, falling off the edge of the tub and onto the floor rug near the candle. Gina quickly turned on the bathroom light as the other girls helped Donna come to and sit up. Donna's face was white as a sheet as she slowly regained her senses. Sarah and Jenny held Donna around the waist and shoulders, steadying her.
The other girls came running from the bedroom to see what was the matter. Donna looked nervous and scared to death as all the girls started asking her what was wrong and what happened. Donna said, "I was chanting the words calling for Sarah's grandma and when you girls were repeating them, I opened my eyes to peek at you all to see that everyone was still doing the seance right. But... when I looked over at Sarah, there was a ghostly, transparent figure of an old woman reflected in one of the mirror tile squares behind her. The old lady was in a dress and crawling in the mirror toward Sarah on her hands and knees. She was smiling and reaching out with her hand like she was trying to touch Sarah's shoulder from inside the mirror!"

Instantly, Sarah let out a loud gasp and covered her mouth with her hand. She too turned pale and became shaken. The girls turned their attention to Sarah and asked her what was wrong.

Sarah said shakily, "I never told any of you before, but my Grandma Louise was crippled and used a wheelchair. At night in her bedroom, it was easier for her to get down on the floor and crawl on her hands and knees when she got ready for bed!" Sarah then smiled weakly and said, "You must have really seen my Grandma Louise!"

Needless to say, the seance ended right then.

Most of the girls could not sleep a wink the rest of the night, but Sarah was very glad she had had the pajama party that Halloween.

My cousin Gina said she was not afraid, but she never stayed overnight there again.