THIS IS NO DREAM... a true story by Rose M Hughes
PART-1

December 13th Nineteen~Hundred and Ninety Two A date that I will not soon forget and neither would any of you who believed themselves to be living in a partially sane or predictable existence. My partner Bill and I, used to officiate a rather hefty sized monthly ufo convergence, atop of the largest metaphysical structure on the entire East Coast. The Heritage Store is the sole manufacturer and distributor of the Edgar Cayce products. I am sure that most of you are very familiar with the workings of Mr. Cayce. His dream empire, located just minutes from this very spot of which I speak. This place is magical indeed and the atmosphere is filled with an airy angelic euphoria. You can not help but be enraptured by its vibration.

Bill and I operated a small business on the second floor of the Heritage center, offering such things as massage, iridology and reflexology. Our specialty, relaxation therapy at its finest. Cleverly named, we were The Body Mind Connection and that is precisely what we were. The most favored means of escape, were agreed by all to be the flotation tank and the Hydrosonic sound bed. Folks, we could send your body and mind to places unimagined, either together or in different directions....
Tell us your desired experience and we would place you in the proper arena with little effort whatsoever. Some of the other services offered to the clientele were true kirlian photography, rolfing, reiki, and... just to bring balance to such a heavenly milieu, Ufo's exterrestrials and other suppressed information. That was how all of the advertisements were titled. WHAT ADVERTISEMENT??? I can not honestly call it such because our only form of advertisements were paper sized fliers strategically posted in conspicuous places throughout the store. 

This place was a little piece of heaven, without a doubt. I could walk downstairs and be surrounded by celestial melodies... inhaling some of the most wonderful smelling imported incense... look at and fondle trinkets, jewelry, statues, books and cards the likes you would be hard pressed to find in many places on Earth, at least under one roof. The people... well, the people were family there is simply no better way to describe the unified bond that existed between all who were a part of this particular space case place.

Our meetings would generally inspire between fifty to sixty cosmic questers with not much more than a mere word of mouth pronouncement, in passing. Neither Bill or myself had expected half of these numbers in attendance when starting these gatherings a year or so earlier. Bill and I worked well together to say the least. We had a symmetrical relationship where our respect and admiration for each other's creativity was extensive. He was the one who would maintain order and keep things on topic, something that I could not try to accomplish with my aversion to disciplined regimens. My mind is strong but I would be the first to admit that every other part of me is much too playful to be disciplined.

Even MY mind runs away in frivolity on occasion. My role was that of the token experiencer. My presence was instrumental in assisting individuals with sorting through their experiences... by offering those of my own as a cushion for them to fall back upon. My empathic abilities can easily, at times, touch upon an individuals emotional state immediately. I could feel what others were feeling without their expressing it. There are many people who have a difficult time processing something of which there is no rational basis of support. Most can not get beyond the question...."Is this REALLY happening to me or am I loosing it?" Unfortunately, this can be an awesomely lonely space to find yourself when there are so few who can dredge through the sensational aspects of such experiences. A very peculiar but irritating phenomenon would transpire sometime during the evening at each and every single meeting I was ever involved in. Although I don't recall being absent from attending any of them... sure as clockwork, I would acquire a headache before leaving... without fail. Before long... it began to be a bit of a joke between Bill and I as to what diabolical potential might be responsible for such an occurrence? I can not help but to giggle each time I contemplate how two people with such completely dissimilar belief structures can come together and manifest such a marvelously choreographed presentation despite their obvious differences.

Well.... this particular meeting happened to be just a little bit different. For some unknown reason I could sense that there was something peculiar about it before it even began. December 13th.... the date haunts me like something I once forgot and need... so very desperately... to remember its significance.

There was nothing unusual pertaining to the number of people who were in attendance. Most of these were the normal hard core followers of all things unexplained. Occasionally someone would bring in a friend that they noticed one day... wearing an alien T-shirt, later to discover this same individual had their own unique experience to tell of... after all. My attention was drawn to a particular woman named Jan, who had frequented... perhaps two meetings prior to this one. She was extremely uncomfortable and I could non audibly detect her screaming from the inside... to release the experience she had so longed to dislodge from its imprisonment within her psyche. I glanced over at Bill and he instantaneously perceived my intent by turning the focus of the meeting toward me. This was our telepathic signal and it meant that I was about to present the group with one of my personal experiences.

I began the oration with my very first (IBE...in the body experience) which occurred in 1973 around the time I was twelve or thirteen years old. Every eye in the room was upon me instantly and some pulled their chairs in closer, so as not to miss a single utterance. I get butterflies just thinking about this because I suffer from severe stage fright. I noticed that Bill's focus was preoccupied with two seemingly out of place men... and a woman that had never been to one of our meetings previously. They actually began taking notes during my discourse. I myself felt a little uneasy with their presence but paid them only slight and intermittent attention at best. Occasionally I would look over and gently smile at them to see if I could invoke as much as the slightest...congenial vibration.... or any vibration at all would have been sufficient from them whatsoever... but I could solicit any discernible response... absolutely none period. How mechanically sentient they seemed... from my personal observations, at least. Never mind them I thought to myself as I proceeded with my animated tale of paranormal intrigue.

There I was.... a member of a rather large family of six children. My biological brother and I were adopted into this mix matched family where we shared residency with two... deaf brothers and two other teenage girls who were sisters from yet another family. All of which were foster children needing a temporary home. As it turned out, this home remained a permanent one for all of us. For the most part, we managed to get along fairly well. At least as well as could be expected for a small clan of six adolescents in one confined area, that is. The boys were in possession of their room and the girls had our own room.(but of course) Three and three, we were a balanced lot...in number anyway. I held the prestigious honor of sleeping in the middle of the room between the other girls. Of course...I had seniority...not in age but duration. My bed was strategically located directly in front of the window and the room was over top of the garage which was underneath of of it. There was approximately a fifteen foot drop from the window ledge to the driveway. This particular evening was a school night so we were made to go to bed early and I was fast asleep for hours when gently awakened by a very strange noise. There I laid in what should have been complete silence but outside... a lone perpetual jingle could be heard getting progressively louder. Remaining still in the bed for a few moments with my eyes wide opened, I tried to place that odd sound. I imagined that it was a bell around a dog's neck... attached to its collar. Jingle, jingle, jling. I decided to check it out....scope out the territory...so I raised myself up to peek out into the expansive darkness. Gee... the moon must be directly in front of the window because the entire room was illuminated with a neon blue glow.... I remember thinking to myself.

There used to be a 27 foot above ground pool situated in the middle of our one acre backyard lot. It had recently been removed because of liner damage that needed repair before it could hold water again. Mom and dad were seriously thinking about growing a garden in its place since the ground was already void of anything growing, like weeds. The place where it had stood was a completely bare circle. As I peered out of the window I thought.... I must be seeing things... so I rubbed my eyes, believing that I needed to bring them into focus. There was no longer an empty barren space where the pool had been. Oh no indeed... there was something very strange in its place instead. This must be some form of mirage or I am still half asleep perhaps? I kept telling myself that the object was not real, but imagined. That thought did not linger within my mind long. Before I knew it... a hatch appeared in the craft which sat firmly within the circle... where there had previously been an undeniably seamless place. Immediately a walkway appeared as well, out of nowhere and I mean...poof...out of

NO-THING.

I was actually....utterly amazed by what I was seeing and I wondered intently how someone was able to pull off such a well execGuted stunt as this? There were some really spectacular special effects being utilized in this production. Down the walkway proceeded what appeared to be....four or five small children, approximately the size of six year olds. WOW...I thought....this is really a trip and why is it that these kids are permitted to stay up so late? They must be making a movie around here....for sure. I watched without even the slightest notion of fear... completely convinced that this was a staged production that I was witnessing and I was satisfied with the fact that I was nothing more than an observer.

The little people walked across the lawn but they seemed to be gliding instead of walking, how very strange....that was just so cool man.... How did they do that number? When they reached the driveway they quickly gathered themselves into a huddle like little football players. However... when they stepped back... away from each other... I noticed that they were holding something that they weren't in possession of before huddling together. I tried to focus on the object so that I could distinguish what it was they were now carrying.... A LADDER!!! It was a rope ladder by golly. Now I am thoroughly convinced that this is nothing but a giant hoax. If these were indeed real aliens.... they could just pop up here or wiggle their noses like in BEWITCHED or something. Why on earth would they resort to the use of a rope ladder? I giggled aloud at this obviously over-looked flaw in their execution. I continued to chuckle at the entertaining show parading in front of me until one of them decided to throw the ladder up to the window sill.

I can still recall experiencing an intense tightness in my stomach, hearing the metal ends of the ladder hit the concrete... and I saw them land on the window sill...just inches away from my face. At that moment...I knew that I was no longer just simply an observer.... I was about to become a participant instead.

My heart started to race ferociously. My body started to tremble and shake uncontrollably. Utter and complete terror took over me in an instant as they started to slowly make their ascent up the ladder. GLUED!!! I remained frozen and couldn't move a muscle. Why wasn't I busting out the wall to get the hell out of there? And then... I saw it reach up and grab the ledge... not three inches in front of my nose. There were three fingers... bulbous looking on the ends, and something similar to a thumb.... coming into clear.... much too clear view. Smack dab in front of my face. It began to pull itself up until I saw the first quarter of its hairless, smooth, ashen gray head. THAT WAS IT!!! I absolutely lost it and it felt as if my skin jumped off of my body.... I was so terrified. Running from the room...I was screaming bloody murder, trying to awaken everyone in the household.

WE ARE ALL ABOUT TO BE EATEN BY ALIENS !!!!

It was all I could think of to say. I ran into my parents room stuttering... unable to talk clearly because I was so terrified. My mother... highly agitated with my behavior.... told me to shut up and get back to bed. "I don't know about you Rose... sometimes you really creep me out coming in here mumbling... standing at the foot of my bed... sleepwalking.... and staring at me with those wicked black eyes. For God sake...who knows... you might have some mass murder gene coursing through your veins. I don't know but what I do know is if you don't go back to bed you are going to get a tanned rear from your father... if you wake him up."

I can't believe this. We are about to get eat up by a group of aliens and you want me to go back in that room? Screw that idea now!!! If you don't give a hoot... I certainly do. Go right ahead on... don't believe me and you will definitely be sorry. I crept out of their room and hid myself in the hallway closet. It seemed as though I must have been in there for 45 minutes to an hour without hearing a single solitary sound. Man.... they are awfully quiet. Why isn't anyone screaming?

My curiosity was overwhelming but did I dare open the closet door and reveal my hiding place? What if they were standing sentinel right outside the door... playing head games with me so they could yell SURPRISE! I had to know... at all cost... I had to know what was going on. I cracked the door about half of an inch... then and inch... then two and more until I stood there with it completely opened. I noticed that the eerie blue light that had completely lit up the room before, was no longer present. Inching my way, ever so slowly toward my room... I was trying to stretch my neck further than the rest of me. Before long I was back inside the room and could clearly see that my sisters were alive and breathing... their chests heaving in the legitimate light of the moon. I slowly peeked out of the window and... nothing... there was no indication that anything out of the ordinary had taken place at all.

Wow... I almost scared myself to death for absolutely no reason what so ever. That was the realest thing that had ever happened to me in my life but it really didn't happen? That is some seriously heavy stuff. I climbed into my bed, pulling the covers tight over my head and shook myself to sleep. The next morning, I thought I was going to get a bitchen out from everyone in the house but no one said as much as a word about the event. There is more to this story... the best part would come years later while trying to uncover the truth of what had happened on this particular evening.
By the time I had reached this part of my story, I had such a severe headache that it was making me nauseous. Requesting that we take a break, I informed Bill that I was really getting seriously ill this time. Sure hated to leave everyone hanging but I could not stay any longer when I felt as though I would vomit from the pain that was stabbing at me in my head. He told me to leave and that he would finish the meeting. I requested that he give Jan my phone number because it was obvious she wanted to talk with me and I felt bad about having to slip out on her. Leaving the building.... I thought that the cool autumn air would make me feel better... or the breeze from the ocean perhaps. We were located directly on the oceanfront. Both the office and my condo were on or across from the beach. I sat in my car for a good fifteen minutes waiting for the pain to subside but it only became worse. It was a full fledged migraine by this time. My place was about two miles away... down Atlantic Avenue on 69th street. I was always partial to that number and loved telling everyone that I lived on 69th Street. It had a catchy sound to it... music to my ears kind of thing, need I say more?

I drove straight home... came in the door... and looked at my husband Tony as he sat in the living room watching television. He looked at me, not saying a word. I said... "I'm home early, aren't you surprised?" He never responded so I told him I wasn't feeling well... I was really sick and needed to lay down. I actually didn't think I would make it up the narrow winding staircase to my bedroom.... having to pull myself up the railing...  thinking that I would lose my grip and come tumbling backwards, breaking my neck in the fall. I managed to make it into the bathroom where I found two aspirins and popped them in my mouth without water. How disgustingly horrible... but I am sure they will work faster this way. Dragging myself to the bed... as soon as I laid back and my head hit the pillow... I was in the dream state. Wow... what the hell just happened here? I am not asleep yet and I know that I'm not. I was completely conscious of the fact that I was not yet sleeping. This was a very strange sensation that I don't feel that I will ever be able to properly express what this felt like. Oh well... I will just go along with the experience and see where it takes me... how extremely odd this is.

To be Continued........CLICK TO PROCEED TO PART 2


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