T he earliest thing I remember was when I was really young. I think about 5 or 6. I had a cousin named Michael. I remember we were about the same age. We played often. Then, after not seeing him for a while I asked my parents where he had been. They told me he went away somewhere.

One night I was in my bedroom crying after being yelled at by my parents, I looked up and Michael was there. He said he came to play. He really looked good. Well, we played for a long time and we must have gotten loud because my mother came up and asked why I was so loud. I told her Michael and I were playing, but when I pointed to him, he was gone. My mother told me not to tell anyone about this, and that Michael had died 3 or 4 weeks earlier.

Later I remember thinking Michaels not gone because he kept coming to my room at night to talk and play. I kept this to myself since my parents were so upset when I initially told them about Michael. When I was about 7 or 8, a Lady came with Michael. She said her name was Gladie and that she use to live in my house. There were many others that eventually came with Michael to visit me. I was never afraid of them. To me they were very real and so nice.