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My earliest recollection where has a young boy, growing up , on Hessle road in Hull, which for those who do not know was the heart and home of the worlds largest deep sea fishing fleet, and with being such a close community it created an identity in myself that I have never had the wish to change or dissociate from, and no matter where I have travelled I am still proud to proclaim my heritage “I’m a lad who grew up on Hessle Road” not said with ego, but in the matter fact that I grew somewhere very special, in a very special community, that had been created by the daily adversity due to poverty, and combined with the na-ture of their men folk incredibly hard and very dangerous work. These two factors enhanced such a close knit community helping each other in what ever they could, from a cup of sugar to a shoulder to grieve on, at the loss of a loved taken by the provider of so many things needed to aid and assist that community, the giver and the taker, always exacting a high price for its god’s given bounty, the sea.
So it was in this environment I was to discover my abilities and use them without understanding them, feeling in some way different to my friends but not understanding why. I can remember many episodes where I was using my naturally abilities but not realising what I was experiencing. Some of these episodes at the time were frightening, and others that seemed so very natural. A good example of one those experiences was, and looking back now it makes me smile with the recollection of this event., I was about 10 or 11years of age and at the time and age it was certainly no laughing matter it was very real and scary.
Again another good soul lesson for us all “Growth without knowledge creates and enhances fear and ignorance”
I lived in a lane which connected Carlton Street and Hawthorne Avenue to-gether and we basically lived in the middle of the lane in an old farm house which when first built, was the first house in the West area of Hull, but as time elapsed and as Hull’s deep sea fishing fleet expanded, more homes where needed to house the ever increasing population that were employed in the fish-ing industry, so the farm house was eventually engulfed by the city that grew up around it.
At the Hawthorne Avenue end of the Lane there where some old stable build-ings, which I and my friends had to pass on our way to school we would pass these old derelict stables, and on certain days on passing I would look down into the old yard and this very big and very angry man would come out one of the stables with a pitchfork in hand and run towards us, swearing and threaten-ing us, he frightened me so that I would run, by god how I did I run to end of the lane 60 to 70 yards further on, and stand at the corner by Alice’s fruit and vegetable shop, now you may think that me taking off so quickly would make my friends wonder what was going on, but a quick explanation that I wanted to see if Alice had any bruised or damaged vegetables or fruit that she did not want, there never was, but the story was enough to explain my actions, but in the meantime wondering why my friends never seemed fazed by the man in the yard so eventually coming to the conclusion that my friends must be braver than me because they did not run as I had, so kept my secret, that secret being that was I was frightened and scared and I was not has brave as my friends and this reasoning went on to create an even more negative aspect in my life, when fearful or frightened lash out first with abuse and if that did not work, I would back up the words by using pyhisical force, so the learned behaviour became “when I become frightened, I would reply with verbal or physical ag-gression” these actions being further strengthened and reinforced by the posi-tive peer recognition I was given by friends.
By now I am sure you have realised as I eventually did, that my friends never saw or experienced what I experienced at that time, and that is my earliest rec-ollection of my natural mediumship.
Years Later in my twenties, I did some research to find out more about this spirit if I could, there was not much I found during my research, but what I did find out was quite interesting. First fact: The stables belonged to the farm and the man who owned the farm was locally well known for his strong relig-ion, and helped with Christian beliefs, devout in his practises.
Secondly: During the week when I was living on the lane, men would group together under the arch that lead into the stable yard, people would come and go and it always appeared to be one person keeping a look out, what I found out later that this was a meeting place where a local bookmaker ran a betting book, which during the fifties this form of gambling was highly illegal and strongly frowned upon the church at the time.
A conclusion I came to but with no direct proof to link these two points to-gether was that the farmer, a devout Christian in his life time was appearing in another time zone to interrupt an illegal meeting on what he perceives is still his land, Interesting, what do you think?.
There were so many spirit contact in my early life for example going to shop at the corner of the street I heard my name called and a ladies voice told me Mrs Jackson’s curtains would be closed, curtains closed signified a death in the family so you walked past the house quietly showing respect by removing your school cap, but as I walked past removing my cap the house the curtains where wide open, so naturally I thought I was mistaken or it was my imagina-tion getting the better of me, as the days went by I totally forgot about the in-cident, but within a few weeks I was sharply reminded. I was at my mothers sister-in-law to baby sit the twins Heather and Helen, but before she went out on road, Auntie Nelly and I tuned into the trawler frequency, so we could listen to the trawler’s transmissions waiting for news of my Uncle Jack’s re-turn to port, and as my Aunty tuned in the radio and it crackled into life the radio suddenly transmitted a distress call coming from a trawler out at sea that was loosing the battle against icing up, and it was going over with the shear weight of ice on the superstructure, in fact two went at the same time, the sec-ond had steamed into danger with no thought for it’s own safety, going to the assistance of the first ship’s who had radioed the distress call, tragic, both lost and yes you have guessed Mrs Jackson was personally touched by this trag-edy, her son “Ronnie” and a good friend of my older brother was a deck hand on one of the trawlers that was lost, and yes has we passed Mrs Jackson’s house later that day the curtains where closed, as were many sets of curtains on many more houses on and around Hessle Road. It was a very sad period of time all families totally aware with the old saying “But for the grace God go I” and their own men folk where safe, yet all feeling the collective grief deep in their own thoughts and feeling at the loss of so many fathers, husbands, both-ers and sons never to return to a safe berth and their families.
I mentioned this episode not only just for the spiritual evidence that was pro-vided in my early years, but to also highlight the very high human price that was paid to provide fish for the rest of the country.
It was tragic episodes like this that forged such a close knit community with their own kind of spiritual and philosophic outlook to life and growing up and being part of such rich tapestry I unknowingly learned and developed my fledgling universal gifts, that in later years became my mediumship.
12 Patrick’s lane adds it’s own spirit visitors from time to time. There were two spirit manifestations in the house which I know now where linked closely together, but at the time seeming entirely separate.
The first spirit person I was aware of in the house was a gentleman who would stand at the top of the stairs, he would he would appear most nights just before it was time for the children to go to bed. I never saw or was aware of him anywhere else in the house.
I can still see him standing there, arms folded, ruddy complexion open necked white and blue striped shirt, no collar, dark swept back hair, receding hair line, wide baggy trousers, and the most unusual feature has he stood there was that he always whore on his feet red ladies carpet slippers, the type were the fur strip rolled over at the sides, and he would be stood there and he would say “time for you all to be in bed”, you may have guessed I never went to bed on my own, I made sure that my younger brothers and sister Linda went to bed in front of me,( being the oldest as some privileges). The gentleman nodded as we each walked past his spot on the landing as if he was counting making sure we where all there, not going till we were all in the bedroom, reappearing if one of us had to go down stairs to fetch an item they had forgotten. In all the years he would appear he never spoke, accept to say “TIME FOR YOU TO ALL BE IN BED” and then he would stand there with a smile on is face. He stopped appearing after I had reached the age of 12 or 13, I came to miss is presence, and the reassurance he brought with him that every thing was safe if he was there, strange when you think I was initially fearful of him standing there, but that is the case with all ignorance it creates fear, and it is knowledge that sets us free. The knowledge of is presence became a comfort to me as a very young child, in my minds eye a friend no one else was aware of, how special to a child that was, his own special friend.
It was to be many years later I was to find out who this gentleman was, and what is connection was to the house and the family, but I will cover this event later on in.
The second event was while my father and the rest of the family where away visiting relatives. My mother and I unable to go due to a period of child hood illness I was suffering with, but there was a consolation prize of a sorts being ill in our household meant that you got to sleep down stairs in front of the fire, on a made up bed on the sofa, and also more importantly the undivided atten-tion and fuss from Mum. So during the period of illness Mum would sleep next door in the front room, so has to be close on hand, leaving the dividing door open, so she could hear if there was anything you required during the night.
My Mum had retired for the night, leaving me snuggled down in front of a well stoked fire, laying there the walls illuminated by the flickering flames, which were creating a fascinating pattern and light show helping me to sleep, but just as I was just dozing off to sleep, I heard a noise not sure what it was at first then with this dread growing in my tummy, I realised the noise was being made by someone slowly, deliberately coming down the stairs, unable to cry out or move as the sound got closer, I was frozen with fear, I had to lay there as this person came near to what had been a short while ago been a very safe and cosy sanctuary, then the door to my room opened slowly, next I heard a person sliding their hand across the wall trying to find the wall switch for the main room lights, by this time, expecting the light to go on anytime, I was well and truly buried beneath my bed covers.
Afters what seemed ages in fact no more that a few seconds the person stopped searching for the wall switch and the door closed again very slowly, with which at the time seemed like a very loud click, at this point my Mum who had also heard the steps, shouted out “Who’s There” and hearing my mother’s voice broke the spell for me, screaming I ran towards my mother for safety. My Mum in full protective flight was a sight to behold and remember.
Mum was a commanding lady, tall, incredibly strong and well built, not fat, quite capable of taking care of herself and this was the person who came through the adjoining door, hair in rollers with a turban headscarf partly cover-ing the rollers, leaving the first three big ones in the front uncovered, her housecoat tightly wrapped around her, and armed with a fire poker, the only thing missing was flames coming from her nostrils, I jest, but as I said a sight to behold.
My mother and I searched that house completely, no windows or outside doors open they where all securely locked, we looked in cupboards, under beds, be-hind curtains, everywhere we could think of but nothing no intruder/s There was nobody in the house but mum and I, well of this world.
Yes you have guessed it I slept with Mum for the rest of the night. We awoke early the following morning and double checked again to find a possible solu-tion to come up with a logical explanation to what had happened last night, but finally the only facts that became clear was as it was the last night, my mother and I where the only living physical beings in the house. I often think of this event, was it my stair’s apparition trying to check up on me because I was down stairs ill, I don’t know I will really never know, but it might have been different if the ceiling light had switched on so I or my mother could have seen clearly what was there, if it was there to be observed, who knows, to me it became just one of the many, many accredited unexplained paranor-mal happenings, well documented but not proven one way or the other. Can it ever be explained, who knows, but
I will leave you with this piece of knowledge that I was told many years later when recalling this event with friends, my mother came in with drinks and in a very matter fact way just stood there and said “what Leslie does not know his father had installed a new pull switch a few days earlier removing the old switch from the wall by the door and replacing it with a new pull cord switch on the ceiling” as I closed my mouth after the initial surprise of my mothers revelation, my thoughts flashed back to that evening the door opening and the sound of someone searching for a light switch not knowing it had been moved in my time space, and the person in their time space would still be looking for a wall switch where they knew in their life’s experience must be.
By now I am sure you have realised as I eventually did, that my friends never saw or experienced what I experienced at that time, and that is my earliest rec-ollection of my natural mediumship.
Years Later in my twenties, I did some research to find out more about this spirit if I could, there was not much I found during my research, but what I did find out was quite interesting. First fact: The stables belonged to the farm and the man who owned the farm was locally well known for his strong relig-ion, and helped with Christian beliefs, devout in his practises.
Secondly: During the week when I was living on the lane, men would group together under the arch that lead into the stable yard, people would come and go and it always appeared to be one person keeping a look out, what I found out later that this was a meeting place where a local bookmaker ran a betting book, which during the fifties this form of gambling was highly illegal and strongly frowned upon the church at the time.
A conclusion I came to but with no direct proof to link these two points to-gether was that the farmer, a devout Christian in his life time was appearing in another time zone to interrupt an illegal meeting on what he perceives is still his land, Interesting, what do you think?.
There were so many spirit contact in my early life for example going to shop at the corner of the street I heard my name called and a ladies voice told me Mrs Jackson’s curtains would be closed, curtains closed signified a death in the family so you walked past the house quietly showing respect by removing your school cap, but as I walked past removing my cap the house the curtains where wide open, so naturally I thought I was mistaken or it was my imagina-tion getting the better of me, as the days went by I totally forgot about the in-cident, but within a few weeks I was sharply reminded. I was at my mothers sister-in-law to baby sit the twins Heather and Helen, but before she went out on road, Auntie Nelly and I tuned into the trawler frequency, so we could listen to the trawler’s transmissions waiting for news of my Uncle Jack’s re-turn to port, and as my Aunty tuned in the radio and it crackled into life the radio suddenly transmitted a distress call coming from a trawler out at sea that was loosing the battle against icing up, and it was going over with the shear weight of ice on the superstructure, in fact two went at the same time, the sec-ond had steamed into danger with no thought for it’s own safety, going to the assistance of the first ship’s who had radioed the distress call, tragic, both lost and yes you have guessed Mrs Jackson was personally touched by this trag-edy, her son and a good friend of my older brother was deck hands on one of the trawlers that was lost, and yes has I passed Mrs Jackson’s house later that day the curtains where closed, as were many sets of curtains on many more houses on and around Hessle Road. It was a very sad period of time all families totally aware with the old saying “But for the grace God go I” and their own men folk where safe, yet all feeling the collective grief deep in their own thoughts and feeling at the loss of so many fathers, husbands, both-ers and sons never to return to a safe berth and their families.
I mentioned this episode not only just for the spiritual evidence that was pro-vided in my early years, but to also highlight the very high human price that was paid to provide fish for the rest of the country.
It was tragic episodes like this that forged such a close knit community with their own kind of spiritual and philosophic outlook to life and growing up and being part of such rich tapestry I unknowingly learned and developed my fledgling universal gifts, that in later years became my mediumship.
My home had it’s own spirit visitors from time to time. There were two spirit manifestations in the house which I know now where linked closely together, but at the time seeming entirely separate.
The first spirit person I was aware of in the house was a gentleman who would stand at the top of the stairs, he would he would appear most nights just before it was time for the children to go to bed. I never saw or was aware of him anywhere else in the house.
I can still see him standing there, arms folded, ruddy complexion open necked white and blue striped shirt, no collar, dark swept back hair, receding hair line, wide baggy trousers, and the most unusual feature has he stood there was that he always whore on his feet red ladies carpet slippers, the type were the fur strip rolled over at the sides, and he would be stood there and he would say “time for you all to be in bed”, you may have guessed I never went to bed on my own, I made sure that my younger brothers and sister Linda went to bed in front of me,( being the oldest has some privileges). The gentleman nodded as we each walked past his spot on the landing as if he was counting making sure we where all there, not going till we were all in the bedroom, reappearing if one of us had to go down stairs to fetch an item they had forgotten. In all the years he would appear he never spoke, accept to say “TIME FOR YOU TO ALL BE IN BED” and then he would stand there with a smile on is face. He stopped appearing after I had reached the age of 12 or 13, I came to miss is presence, and the reassurance he brought with him that every thing was safe if he was there, strange when you think I was initially fearful of him standing there, but that is the case with all ignorance it creates fear, and it is knowledge that sets us free. The knowledge of his presence became a comfort to me as a very young child, in my minds eye a friend, no one else was aware of my friend, how special to a child that was, his own special friend.
It was to be many years later I was to find out who this gentleman was, and what is connection was to the house and the family, but I will cover this event later in my new book.
The second event was while my father and the rest of the family where away visiting relatives. My mother and I unable to go due to a period of child hood illness I was suffering with, but there was a consolation prize of a sorts being ill in our household meant that you got to sleep down stairs in front of the fire, on a made up bed on the sofa, and also more importantly the undivided attention and fuss from Mum.
So during the period of illness Mum would sleep next door in the front room, so has to be close on hand, leaving the dividing door open, so she could hear if there was anything I required during the night.
My Mum had retired for the night, leaving me snuggled down in front of a well stoked fire, laying there, the walls illuminated by the flickering flames, which were creating a fascinating pattern and light show helping me to sleep, but just as I was just dozing off to sleep, I heard a noise not sure what it was at first then with this dread growing in my tummy, I realised the noise was being made by someone slowly, deliberately coming down the stairs, unable to cry out or move as the sound got closer, I was frozen with fear, I had to lay there as this person came near to what had been a short while ago been a very safe and cosy sanctuary, then the door to my room opened slowly, next I heard the sliding of a hand across the wall, the hand trying to find the wall switch for the main room lights, by this time, expecting the light to go on anytime, I was well and truly buried beneath my bed covers.
Afters what seemed ages in fact no more that a few seconds the person stopped searching for the wall switch and the door closed again very slowly, with which at the time seemed like a very loud click, at this point my Mum who had also heard the steps, shouted out “Who’s There” and hearing my mother’s voice broke the spell for me, screaming I ran towards my mother for safety. My Mum in full protective flight was a sight to behold and remember.
Mum was a commanding lady, tall, incredibly strong and well built, not fat, quite capable of taking care of herself and this was the person who came through the adjoining door, hair in rollers with a turban headscarf partly coverring the rollers, leaving the first three big ones in the front uncovered, her housecoat tightly wrapped around her, and armed with a fire poker, the only thing missing was flames coming from her nostrils, I jest, but as I said a sight to behold.
My mother and I searched that house completely, no windows or outside doors open they where all securely locked, we looked in cupboards, under beds, be-hind curtains, everywhere we could think of but nothing no intruder/s There was nobody in the house but mum and I, well of this world.
Yes you have guessed it I slept with Mum for the rest of the night. We awoke early the following morning and double checked again to find a possible solution to come up with a logical explanation to what had happened last night, but finally the only facts that became clear was as it was the last night, my mother and I where the only living physical beings in the house. I often think of this event, was it my stair’s apparition trying to check up on me because I was down stairs ill, I don’t know I will really never know, but it might have been different if the ceiling light had switched on so my mother or I could have seen clearly what was there, if it was there to be observed, who knows, to me it became just one of the many, many accredited unexplained paranor-mal happenings, well documented but not proven one way or the other. Can it ever be explained, who knows, but
I will leave you with this piece of knowledge that I was told many years later when recalling this event with friends, my mother came in with drinks and in a very matter fact way just stood there and said “what john does not know his father had installed a new pull switch a few days earlier removing the old switch from the wall by the door and replacing it with a new pull cord switch on the ceiling” as I closed my mouth after the initial surprise of my mothers revelation, my thoughts flashed back to that evening the door opening and the sound of someone searching for a light switch not knowing it had been moved in my time space, and the person in their time space would still be looking for a wall switch where they knew in their life’s experience the switch must be.
These episodes where taken from my fist book One Year 365 days, the Jouney Begins
Life is full of beautiful contacts if we only but knew...John
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