Hello and goodbye

I was adopted at 6 weeks old. I've always known that I was adopted because my parents would talk about when they " got me" not when I was born. Not that I actually understood what that meant when I was 7 when my biological father showed up to say hello and goodbye.

I had the typical American family of the 1970s. Two big brothers, a mom, dad , 3 cats and a dog. The only ghost I had ever heard of was Casper. One night, very early in the morning I woke up from a very deep sleep. I was wide awake as soon as I opened my eyes. I wasn't scared, but thought it was odd that the only thing I could move was my eyes. I looked from the window to the door, trying to figure out what woke me up. I began to hear hard heel shoes, like dress shoes, walking up the hallway. I tried to call out to see if it was my dad getting up for work. He was a professor at a local state college at the time and always got up around 5 am. I couldn't make a peep. The harder I tried to talk the more frustrated I got. Meanwhile the footsteps stopped right by my door. I heard a young sounding man saying " wake up, I need to talk to you, wake up!" Then it switched to " Sherry Ann wake up, I need to talk to you!" This seemed to go on for a VERY long time. Me trying to speak and the voice urging me to speak.

Now my name is not Sherry Ann but I knew that whoever it was spoke directly to me and knew exactly who I was. I feel like more was said, but I can't remember what it was. Finally the voice said " remember that I'll always be with you."

Suddenly I could move, sit up, speak, everything like I hadn't just been struggling to do that only seconds before. Before long I heard my dad moving around getting ready for work. I asked him if he had been up, or if my brothers had been up but he said no.

Through the years I had had the feeling of that young man beside me from time to time. It became a familiar presence and I remember my child self actually talking to this presence. I never got any feedback but felt that I was heard. Although my first experience with sleep paralysis was pleasant if not confusing, my second and hopefully last experience was definitely not.

I woke up one night feeling like there was an elephant sitting on my chest. I couldn't breathe and struggled against....nothing! I opened my eyes and could see absolutely nothing! I could move and couldn't scream. I felt rather than saw a struggle above me and after what felt like forever the force seemed to evaporate. I shot up out of bed, and looked around but saw nothing. I was able to see everything because I always left my bathroom light on which illuminated the room in a shadowy glow. I laid back down and felt a calm overtake me and actually fell back to sleep. In the morning I was doubting myself, thinking it might have been a night terror but I still believe this actually happened to me. I think my unseen friend fought it off for me.

Now fast forward 15 years. I had always been curious about my bio- people and set out to find them. It was actually a very easy process. I called the social services office that had arranged my adoption and since my bio- mother had left permission for them to give me her name I found her in less than a week. I told them that I wanted to find my bio- mom and paternal grandmother. The social worker thought that it was odd that I didn't want to find my bio-dad, and I told her that I didn't think it was possible. After she had contacted my bio- mom and grandmother she called me back with the information. She was acting a little strangely as she told me that my bio-dad had died. I said yes, I know. He died when I was 7. She was flabbergasted. She asked me how I knew that information to which I told her that he had come to me to tell me hello and goodbye when I was 7. The icing on the cake, my bio- mom had named me Sherry Ann.