Usually, I find myself in the skeptical camp when I read a ghost story. Maybe it’s the real deal, or maybe it’s fiction. There was something about this story that struck a chord in me. I’m not sure what it was, but after I read the last word, I thought, “Wow. That was powerful.”

Excerpted from Kate’s Room

One afternoon I got out of work from the hospital early. It was a beautiful spring day, so warm, smelled good outside, the sun was shining throughout the house on Cedar Avenue. I was in the newly renovated kitchen doing dishes and looking forward to the weekend ahead. The window in front of me was open and I was enjoying the sounds of neighborhood kids playing. It was about 3:30 in the afternoon. I was the only person in the house at that time, save for our six cats, who usually all slept upstairs together until night came. Suddenly, I began to hear a quiet song playing on a piano. I couldn’t recognize the specific song, it sounded as if a child was trying to pick out some simple melodies and chords. It was slow and pretty. I remember thinking how sweet it was that a neighbor child probably was just learning how to play. I put my ear to the open window, listening for the direction of the sweet, youthful melody. But I discovered the music was not coming from outside. I felt a little anxious as I walked slowly over to the basement door (which was right off the kitchen). I stood at the top of the basement steps and listened to what I didn’t really yet believe: that the sweet little tune was coming from my basement. Yet there was not supposed to be anyone home except me.

Strangely, the music kept playing for quite a while. I was way too scared to go downstairs and prove or disprove this oddity. So I rationalized and told myself, “You’re probably imagining that it’s a real song; it’s probably one of the cats walking around on the piano keys.” So I walked back into the kitchen and called for all the cats. They usually would all come to me if called. All six cats came sleepily down from the upstairs of the house - none of them had been in the basement at all! The now eerie little tune kept playing from the old, forgotten piano in the basement. I ran out to the front porch and waited for Gary (my husband at the time) to come home. He did come home about ten minutes later. I felt very unsettled. Gary reassured me, he told me I probably imagined everything, and went inside.