Author: chloemaki

Q. What did you learn about others from your experiences?

A. Something that I have learned about humanity through my personal experiences is that some peoples souls are so powerful they are able to remain on Earth after death and even communicate with the living.

Q. What did you discover about yourself?

A. Something I discovered about myself was that I was a lot stronger than I thought I was. When I would have these experiences I would be so afraid and feel so powerless. However I was able to discover that through confidence and getting older I was able to put those paralyzing fears to rest. Which in turn made the experiences almost go away entirely.

Q. What did you learn about the world and your part in it?

A. I learned that the work is a very confusing and strange place and that I am only a tiny part of it. To think that someones soul can remain on Earth and haunt the living even after death makes the world a lot stranger and also makes me feel quite small compared to everything else that is going on around me.

Q. How to survive?

A. I learned that when you have confidence and don’t feel as afraid you are more powerful overall. Which makes you less likely to get picked on by a bully or maybe even a ghost.

Q. How to be true to yourself?

A. I learned that your gut feeling is almost always right and even if people you trust are telling you different you should still go with what your gut is telling you to do.

Q. What’s most important to you?

A. I would say that my family and friends are what is most important to me.

Essay 2 Draft 2

Draft 2

Ever since I can remember I have always loved horror movies. I enjoyed the adrenaline rush you’d get after a good jump scare and I always thought that they were fun to watch. My favorite type of horror movies growing up were always the ghost stories. I was intrigued by the idea that some people are not truly gone after they have died and in fact sometimes haunt the living. It interested me so much I went out and bought myself a ouija board. I wanted to see a ghost for myself and decided I’d play it in my house. Nothing too exciting happened at first and I soon lost interest in the whole thing. That’s when peculiar things began to happen. 

My younger sister and I shared a room for most of our childhood. It wasn’t a large room however it worked for us and fit our two beds comfortably. One night as my sister and I are falling asleep we heard scratching coming from the closet door. This wasn’t anything out of the ordinary however because our cat had a tendency to hide in the closet and as a result would accidentally get locked inside. Due to my sister and I being very tired, neither of us got up right away. I think we were both hoping the other would eventually break and just get up. After some time I said, “Abby, let the cat out of the closet.” she groggily responded, “You’re closer.” I groaned and pushed myself up off my bed and walked over to the closet. At this point the scratching had been continuous however as soon as I got closer to the door it stopped. Thinking my cat had heard me coming I opened the closet door expecting to see her come running out however there was nothing there. Confused I looked deeper into the closet trying to see if she had hid somewhere. To my surprise the closet was empty and now fear had begun to set in like a crashing wave. I knew for sure that I had heard scratching because my sister heard it too. So what was making that sound? I quickly stepped back and exclaimed to my sister that the closet was empty. She sat up and looked at me puzzled. I repeated myself and then walked to the light, turning it on. Trying to find a reasonable explanation but there wasn’t one. The next morning, my sister and I told our parents what had happened. They immediately blamed it on our imagination and the fact that we were always watching scary movies. So that’s what my sister and I convinced ourselves had happened. 

However the activity in my house soon became more frequent. The drawers in the room I shared with my sister began to open on their own. We noticed one day while we were cleaning our room that the top drawer of the our dresser slid open. We immediately yelled ghost and made a huge joke out of the entire situation, as a way to calm our nerves. However this occurrence became more frequent and we decided to again look for a reasonable explanation. But there wasn’t one. The drawers would open very slowly sometimes whereas other times the drawers would slam open with such force the noise would startle you. That wasn’t the only strange activity that was occuring. We began to hear tapping on the window at night. Now this scared my sister and myself so much we always ran to get our parents thinking someone was trying to kidnap us. However each time they checked, nothing was there. Things like this went on for a while however one night I finally saw something.

I woke up in a cold sweat and decided to get some water. I slowly slipped out of bed and began walking to the kitchen. It was a dark long walk to the kitchen and at the time I was terrified of the dark. I always felt as if I was being watched and in the dark I felt so vulnerable. So I wanted to get there fast in order to turn on the light. Once I made it to the kitchen and successfully got myself some water it was time to walk back to my room, in the dark. I walked quickly to my room and soon I hopping back into bed. I soon turned off the light in an attempt to go back to sleep. As my eyes began to adjust to the darkness, I felt as though someone was watching. I rolled over in my bed trying not to scare myself too much when I saw someone standing in the hallway. It was a tall figure and at first I thought it was my dad. I quickly asked, “Dad is that?” When I got no response I was frozen with fear. The figure was tall and had the shape of a person however I couldn’t make out the face due to the darkness. It was almost as if the figure was darker than the blackness that surrounded it. I then pulled the covers over my head and called for my parents. I was petrified and I somehow hoped my blankets would protect me from whatever that was. My parents ran into my room alarmed by my call and asked what was wrong. I frantically explained what I had seen and my Dad searched the house immediately, thinking someone might have broken in. But once again they found nothing. My dad then lectured me about how it was all my imagination and I was just scaring myself. I wanted to believe him but I really didn’t. I was scared of my own house and I just wanted all of the weird activity to stop.

My bedroom is a smaller room with three orange walls and one blue wall. The orange is not very bright, I would call it a pastel orange. The blue wall is also a shade of pastel blue. I have a large multicolored tapestry that covers one of my walls entirely and another one of my walls is covered in various posters of my favorite bands and shows. I have two windows in my room that look out to the backyard. My bed is in the right corner of the room with lights above it.

Our bedroom had all white walls with some princess decorations hanging. My bed was a twin bed that sat to the left side of the room. My sister had a twin loft bed that was on the right side of the room opposite of mine. We had a purple fuzzy carpet running in between our two beds. We had one large dresser with a mirror that faced our beds. As well as a tall dresser with no mirror that was at the end of my bed against the wall.

Sensory List

Concept Word: Fear

Looks like- Someone standing too close to the edge of a cliff.

Sounds like- The screech of a train coming to a stop.

Smells like- Burning rubber against the street. 

Tastes like- A sour candy that you didn’t expect to be sour.

Feels like- A cold breeze giving you chills.

Reminds me of- The feeling you get once you have almost gotten into a car accident. 

Is the opposite of- Feeling warm and comfortable in bed.

Is- The shadow you see dart across the room. 

Concept Word: Excitement 

Looks like- A dog welcoming home their owner after a long day of them being away.

Sounds like- An applause after a performance.

Smells like- The smell of your favorite cookies being baked.

Tastes like- A soda on a hot day.

Feels like- When you get into a hot shower after a long day of work.

Reminds me of- Catching fire flies for the first time with my cousins.

Is the opposite of- Of hearing that a friend has died.

Is- The sun rising in the morning after a large thunderstorm. 

Concept Word: Confusion

Looks like- A traffic jam on a busy street.

Sounds like- A room full of people all talking about different things.

Smells like- The burning of something plastic.

Tastes like- A sweet pickle.

Feels like- The slime kids make with glue and soap.

Reminds me of- When you first wake up and you don’t know where you are. 

Is the opposite of- Looking for a piece of clothing in your room and finding it right away.

Is- The feeling you get when you lose something you just had. 

Concept Word: Anxiety

Looks like- A dark room that is slowly getting smaller and smaller.

Sounds like- Nails scratching against a chalkboard. 

Smells like- There is something burning in your house.

Tastes like- How your mouth tastes after you have just thrown up.

Feels like- You are being hugged too tight for too long.

Reminds me of- Being locked in a burning car.

Is the opposite of- Being outside and free.

Is- Something that makes you feel afraid of everything. 

Concept Word: Relief

Looks like- Diving into a clear pool. 

Sounds like- The woods at night.

Smells like- It is about to rain.

Tastes like- A cool glass of water after a long day.

Feels like- Someone scratching your back.

Reminds me of- A cool morning.

Is the opposite of- Feeling trapped somewhere. 

Is- Taking a long deep breath after being sick for a long time.

Essay 2 Draft 1

Ever since I can remember I have always loved horror movies. I enjoyed the adrenaline rush you’d get after a good jump scare and I always thought that they were fun to watch. My favorite type of horror movies growing up were always the ghost stories. I was intrigued by the idea that some people are not truly gone after they have died and in fact sometimes haunt the living. It interested me so much I went out and bought myself a ouija board. I wanted to see a ghost for myself and decided I’d play it in my house. Nothing too exciting happened at first and I soon lost interest in the whole thing. That’s when peculiar things began to happen. 

My younger sister and I shared a room for most of our childhood. It wasn’t a large room however it worked for us and fit our two beds comfortably. One night as my sister and I are falling asleep we heard scratching coming from the closet door. This wasn’t anything out of the ordinary however because our cat had a tendency to hide in the closet and as a result would accidentally get locked inside. Due to my sister and I being very tired, neither of us got up right away. I think we were both hoping the other would eventually break and just get up. After some time I said, “Abby, let the cat out of the closet.” she groggily responded, “You’re closer.” I groaned and pushed myself up off my bed and walked over to the closet. At this point the scratching had been continuous however as soon as I got closer to the door it stopped. Thinking my cat had heard me coming I opened the closet door expecting to see her come running out however there was nothing there. Confused I looked deeper into the closet trying to see if she had hid somewhere. To my surprise the closet was empty and now fear had begun to set in. I knew for sure that I had heard scratching because my sister heard it too. So what was making that sound? I quickly stepped back and exclaimed to my sister that the closet was empty. She sat up and looked at me puzzled. I repeated myself and then walked to the light, turning it on. Trying to find a reasonable explanation but there wasn’t one. The next morning, my sister and I told our parents what had happened. They immediately blamed it on our imagination and the fact that we were always watching scary movies. So that’s what my sister and I convinced ourselves had happened.

Character Description Essay 2

My younger sister (Abby)

• dirty blonde hair
• light blue eyes
• beauty mark above the lip the left side
• small 10 year old, probably 60 pounds and 4’9
• full lips
• light blonde eyebrows
• Wore a lot of bright colored clothes from Justice
• Shoulder length hair
• Always looked like she had just finished playing outside

Cat in the closet

• Abby was asleep on her bed with her head facing me
• She heard the noise and looked at me/ she didn’t seem scared just more annoyed that there was a sound disrupting her sleep.
• She said very tiredly that I have to let the cat out
• She rolled over so that she was now facing away from me
• when I told her nothing was there she rolled over and looked towards the closet
• she seemed more confused then anything but mainly tired
• she soon turned away and fell back asleep

Details for Essay 2

Cat in the Closet

• One night my younger sister and I woke up to the sound of my cat scratching on our closet door in our room
• I was sleeping on a twin bed and my sister was on a loft bed further away from the closet.
• We both heard the noise and woke up. After we began to argue about who was gonna let the cat out of the closet because the scratching hadn’t stopped.
• I was technically closer so I had to get up and let the cat out.
• I got up from my twin bed and walked over to me closet were I proceeded to open the closet door and look for my cat.
• When I opened the door my cat did not run out, which she would usually do after being locked in there.
• I looked through my closet and my cat was not in there. So I immediately told my younger sister who was half asleep and we decided we would just not worry about it.
• The next morning we looked through the closet which we left closed after the incident last night to see if more scratching would happen and nothing did.
• We never figured out who or what was scratching on the closet door.

Dark Figure

• One night I woke up really dehydrated and decided to go to the kitchen to get water.
• It was extremely hot in my room and I wanted to get water fast and go back to bed because I was really tired.
• I walked to the kitchen where I got myself some watering then headed back to my room.
• I always felt really nervous and scared in my house so I was rushing to get back into the safety of my bed.
• Once I got to my room I hopped into bed and turned off the light.
• Once I did that I rolled over facing my open door that leads to a hallway.
• As I was looking out I say a tall man about the same size as my dad standing at the end of the hallway, watching me.
• At first I thought it was my dad and called out for him but when he didn’t answer I quickly realized it wasn’t what I though it was and became frozen in fear.
• I then quickly pulled my blankets over me head in an effort the shield myself from my fear and called out for my parents.
• My dad ran into my room where I explained what happened. He then checked the entire house, where he found nothing.

Outline for My Story (Essay 2)

1. Exposition 
   1. The story I will be telling in this essay is about my personal experiences with the supernatural.
   2. The main characters in my story will be my family and myself.
   3. The setting of this story will take place in the house I grew up in.
   4. I will talk about various incidents that took place that have led me to believe ghosts are real.
2. Conflict/ Inciting Incident
   1. I will talk about the first time my little sister and I experienced some sort of supernatural activity.
      1. This would be the story of my cat scratching to be let out of the closet, however when I opened it nothing was there. 
3. Rising Action
   1. I will talk about some of my many experiences in the house I grew up in.
      1. One night I woke up to a dark figure standing outside my room that I first thought was my dad.
      2. Doors and cabinets would open on their own as well as shared dreams between my family members. 
4. Climax
   1. The climax of my essay will focus on the death of my great grandmother and the strange occurrence that took place.
      1. I had a very vivid dream one night of my great grandmother and I having a conversation. I remember her telling me that she loved me and she would see me later; that morning I answered the phone to my Aunt asking to talk to me mom frantically. I knew then that my great grandmother had died.  
5. Falling Action
   1. I will talk about the conversation I had with my mom were she shared her own experiences, which were oddly similar to my own.
   2. I will also include my family moving out of that particular house and having the experiences stop. 
6. Resolution 
   1. My resolution to this story will be that there is something after death and people that have died are able to communicate with the living. I will also talk about why I am not afraid and what I really believe, which is that ghosts exist and I have experienced them.

3 Story Ideas for Essay 2

1. Ghosts are real: I will share some of my ghost stories that I have personally experienced in order to make a convincing argument that ghosts are real.
2. An alcoholic parent is a bad parent: I will talk about my experiences with an alcoholic parent and how their choices affected their life as well as my own, in a negative way.
3. Forgiveness is always possible: I will talk about times that I have forgiven the unforgivable and moved on with my life, which was ultimately helping myself heal.

I have come to believe… that ghosts are real.

I am standing here as a… ghost believer.

Less than 5 years ago… I saw a dark apparition outside my room.