Category Uncategorized

Apr 25 2017

A Reservoir that Has Created More than Drinking Water

Quabbin Reservoir in western Massachusetts is a beautiful place, but many things haunt it, and their presence is palpable.  Construction on Quabbin began in the 1930’s as it was created to supply water for Boston.  The project was completed in 1946.  During those years pain, sadness, upheaval and relocating bodies – maybe,   left their mark.

The western MA towns of Dana, Enfield, Prescott, and Greenwich were decimated to quench the craving of eastern MA for more and more water to support its burgeoning population.  The satisfaction of some came as a severe sacrifice to others.  Politics, it seems, never changes.  Lives of those who were displaced, those many years ago, were never the same and the emotional scars never went away.  This agony alone can cause disrupting energy that can still be felt today.

In all, approximately 2500 people were forced to leave the only home they had ever known.  Whatever they could move was saved, what couldn’t be moved or carried was gone forever.  Houses were razed, homesteads were destroyed, and what remained was bulldozed and then set on fire.  Even the six to seven thousand dead were said to have been moved.  But, were they?

According to the documentary Under Quabbin:  The Search for the Lost Towns  …[i]

there were many stacks and broken shards of grave stones lying next to old cemeteries. These markers were not taken away when the supposed exhumation of the long dead happened in the lost towns of the Swift River Valley.  Bodies were allegedly taken and reinterred at Quabbin Park Cemetery in Ware – dedicated as the new home of the dead from the drowning villages.  But, with so many memorial stones left behind, can anyone be sure no bodies remained with them?

No mention has ever been made about the sacred grounds of the Nipmuck Indians who lived in this central Massachusetts area for hundreds of years.  They had settlements around the Swift River Valley and surely had dedicated burial grounds for their people.  These dead were not moved by any account I can find, so it’s possible that some of the deceased still remain under the waters.  [ii]

If you ever go to visit Quabbin, the beauty of the spot is wonderful.  But, as you  walk around, view the water, and listen to the wind in the trees, you start to feel something.  The energy isn’t as comforting or easy as such a scenic place might inspire.  There’s a restlessness, a sense, that something isn’t quite right.  And you feel like you aren’t alone.  It feels like those who were forced to leave have come home.  They have reclaimed what was always theirs.

http://www.foquabbin.org/valley.html

[i]

Author:

            Ed Klekowski; Libby Klekowski; Jonathan Williams; Michael Volmar; University of Massachusetts (Amherst campus); All authors

Publisher:

Springfield, Mass. : WGBY, a division of the WGBH Educational Foundation, 2003.[ii]

                “The only graveyrads left untouched were those known to be old Native American burial grounds. For some reason, the decision makers chose not to disturb the dead from such consecrated locations.” -referencing the relocation of the deceased to Quabbin Park Cemetery.

Haunted Massachusetts:  Ghosts and Strange Phenomena of the Bay State, by Cheri Revai, Stackpole Books, 2005.

–  ashanta

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com

 

Apr 16 2017

October Mountain Mystery

This is an experience I had years ago while living in a different town.

About 5 miles from where I was living, in Western Massachusetts, there is a state forest that covers roughly 16,500 acres[1]. I had been told by numerous people it was a bizarre place, so a friend and I decided to go for a hike around an old Boy Scout camp that used to be there[2] next to Felton Lake. Being curious we hiked around for a while and found it. The camp no longer existed because someone had burned it down at one time or another. We had decided to hang out by the lake and look around for a while. When it became late afternoon we realized it was time to leave if we were to get out of the woods before dark.

After a while, as we were hiking back, we started hearing these grunting sounds. They seemed to be coming from quite a ways away from us. The first thing we thought was that it was a bear and so we picked up our pace. The noise seemed to pick up pace with us,although it still sounded to be a distance away.

As the sun went down and it got closer to dark the grunts seemed to get closer to us and started to come from different spots. It was as if something was communicating, as strange as that sounds.

When we got out of the forest and back onto the road I looked back and saw these eyes looking out at us. I swear they seemed to be 6 or 7 feet off the ground!

We were freaked out to say the least and got the hell away from there as fast as we possibly could. I haven’t been back there since for obvious reasons. Now, many years later I want to go back with our paranormal group and maybe get some answers to what I saw, as well as the things that have been reported by other people. Over the years spirits have been reported near a long abandoned cemetery and along the path that leads to it. UFOs have also been seen in the area.

Felton Lake is in October Mountain State Forest. It consists of several parcels of land located in Becket, Lee, Washington, and Lenox, MA. It is the largest State Forest in Massachusetts. (www.mass.gov)

Reported sightings include anthropoid creatures, like Bigfoot, mysterious lights, and a ghost girl in the abandoned 1800’s cemetery.

[1]    October Mountain State Forest

[2]    Camp Eagle

–  Bran

Mar 10 2017

A Beautiful and Haunted Museum

A beautiful and haunted museum sits next to the Connecticut River in rural Hadley, MA.  Situated on acres, amongst farmland, this c. 1752 Colonial-style house has been home to many of the same-family members over the course of a couple hundred years.  In 1949, Dr. James Huntington opened the home to the public and the Porter, Phelps, Huntington House Museum was born.

After such a long history, it isn’t too surprising that the house seems to be home to more than one family member who just didn’t want to leave.  Phenomena associated with the house are doors that open and shut on their own, footfalls walking the halls and rooms,  disembodied voices, and encounters with someone that quickly moves past visitors.  It seems that most of the activity is from a woman or two, and possibly a child who seems to like the staircases best.

Moses Porter constructed the house outside the Hadley village stockade on about 600 acres of fertile land and created a home for his wife Elizabeth and their young daughter Betty.  Things went well until the French and Indian War broke out and Moses was called to duty.  He was deployed to the Lake George area in 1755.  Capt. Porter was killed in battle and buried in New York.  One night, one of the Porter’s servants handed Elizabeth her husband’s sword from battle.  She knew then, he’d never be home again.  Elizabeth never got over the death of her husband.  The house experienced a long period of sadness and emotional distress that continued in a downward spin.

Eventually, the house was passed along to Elizabeth Porter’s daughter Elizabeth. Betty lived in the mansion with her husband Charles Phelps, Jr. and their several children.  After Charles died, Elizabeth hoped her son, Charles, would bring his family and come to the house to live with her.  He never did.  After Betty’s death, the house went to her daughter, Elizabeth Whiting Phelps,  who had married Dan Huntington, the parents of Dr. James Huntington.  The House is now managed by the Porter Phelps Huntington Foundation.

It has been purported that an impression in the bed can be seen in the front bedroom that belonged to Elizabeth and Moses….the place where Mrs. Porter got the devastating news her husband was dead.   We’ve toured the property on several occasions and on one of them a definite shape could be seen in the bed.  We’ve heard knockings, and there are definite shadows that can been seen out of the corner of one’s eyes.   I understand that the family themselves, and only among themselves, knew some of their relatives never left the property.

Who is the woman there?  It’s up for grabs.  It could be either Elizabeth Porter or Elizabeth Phelps.  They both seemed to have reason enough to stay on.  Maybe if you go and visit you can determine the source of activity…..and experience it for yourself.  There’s a prominent feeling of being both watched and followed.   I don’t think you could ever feel like you were alone in the place.  And the child?  Maybe one of the children who never reached adulthood and left this world at a very young age.

It’s worth a visit to this museum for it’s historical, architectural, and aesthetic value alone.  But, if you’re fortunate enough to have a family member visit you while you’re there – it’s an extra treat.

–  ashanta

ashantaofthelema@gmail.com

Feb 12 2017

Announcing Western Mass Paranormal now covering Tri-State area

WESTERN MASS PARANORMAL NOW COVERING TRI-STATE AREA

We just can’t get enough of New England or its mysteries. We want to invite all of our loyal followers to explore more of it with us and welcome new friends

from the ENTIRE MASSACHUSETTS, CONNECTICUT, AND RHODE ISLAND AREA.

We’d like to invite you to share your thoughts and/or questions with us.  Is there a location you’ve heard about and would like more information on?  Do you have an interest in us investigation something special to you?  We’d love to have your input, suggestions, and your stories, if you’d like to share them with us.
Please contact us at:  ashantaofthelema@gmail.com
Thank you for reading and thank you for sharing.
     – ashanta
Feb 10 2017

And Death? – a thought…

Everyone has thoughts about death.  And, mythology, movies, religion, and most other aspects of life all have their own thoughts, ideas, and expressions of this eventual destiny we all face.  But, what would you do if you met Death face to face and it was bright, flashy, and had a big smile?

I mean, we always think of death as this end-all thing.  Darkness, nothingness,   (etc.), but what if it isn’t?   What if what we now think of as life is really death?  What if when we die we are actually re-born into an existence that is exhilarating and meaningful?

So what about that dark, black- hooded one holding a scythe?  Who is he?  Have you thought about or taken a good look at the world around you right now?  Maybe that dark one doesn’t represent what comes next.  Maybe, that one describes what we are living in here and now.

What if death is wrapped in light, contemporary clothing, and a smile?  Would it seem so ominous then?  What if death offered reuniting with those we’ve lost that have gone on before us?  There are so many accounts of people we know and care about coming to visit us after their passing at other times – why not be able to be with that family after we, also, go on?

Have you ever sat back and contemplated death?  How do you feel about it as it pertains to you?  It isn’t something that you want to do to take up a lot of your time, but it is worth a think or two.  Take away the thoughts of pain at not being with those you love again on this plane of existence.  Time won’t heal that raw-ness, but it will mitigate some of those feelings.  But, if you know will you will re-unite with them again at a future point   —  it’s like going on a sabbatical of sorts.  Just think about dying.  If you know it’s still an existence on another level of what the Universe gives, then, it’s like moving to someplace new.  Will we be alone?  Who knows, but I think we are all born into spiritual families and I also believe we return to them.  There are too many accounts of people upon death being reunited with those we love and know.  And, I don’t believe these are only figments of our minds upon that final farewell to this material plane.  That brings us to what is consciousness?  I don’t know, but neither do scientists.  No one knows, but I’m willing to believe that it is part of the Universe that we are all a part of and doesn’t end.  We are all a thread in the fabric of the Universe and that fabric isn’t torn regardless of what state we are in, be it life or death…..and, who really knows what state is what or when.  We are all a thread in the fabric in the concomitance of life in the Universe.

Life gives strife, worry, disease, pain, anxiety, emaciation, dissatisfaction, frustration, and depression.  Death offers relief from that.  We have no idea of what else it may offer, but since all things in life seem to operate on a diametrical symmetry, things on the other side can’t be all that bad.

– ashanta

Oct 30 2016

All Hallows

Happy New Year to all of you who celebrate the Celtic New Year at this season.  The harvests have been collected, the air usually gets a bit crisper, the nights are getting longer, and Halloween is just around the corner.

Samhain is a wonderful time of year to go a haunting.  The veil gets thinner as the end of the month approaches.  You can feel the energy change and get more charged with higher vibrations.  The spirit world in all its manifestations lies close and communication happens faster.

Maybe those feelings you get of being watched are true —  because you are!  How about that something you notice out the corner of your eye?  Perhaps it isn’t a “floater”.  Are you getting more feelings of deja vu?  Do your animals act weird and stare at something you can’t see?  Do they bark or meow for no apparent reason?  Run out of a room they are usually comfortable in?  Do you feel like you may have some sort of message coming that you can’t quite figure out?  This could be a good time to look more closely into the things that just seem like a coincidence.  There’s no such thing as a coincidence.  But, synchronicity is real.

History has it that people dressed up at this time of the year…when they paid tribute to those that had gone on before and paved the way.  The day celebrated the dead, but those who ventured out of their houses didn’t want to be recognized, for fear those dearly departed would follow them home, come in, and stay for a while.  So — people wore masks to keep their identities secret.

The tradition to dress up on Halloween has stayed with us…..even though we know if anyone wants to haunt a house a mask won’t stop them.  Enjoy the day —  and night —  and set an extra place setting at the dinner table.  You never know who may come to visit.

 

–  ashanta

Oct 19 2016

An Angel?

Was he an angel??

My good friend argued his best with me not to buy that car. But, I wanted it.  Ever since losing my last MG Midget there wasn’t another car that would take its place.  So, overlooking all good reason not to invest in this little sporty model, I purchased it.  It was great!  That lasted almost a month.

One day while out doing grocery shopping with my small daughter, elderly grandmother, and a puppy, we were on our way home.  Now,  you have to consider the size of this vehicle….  it’s about the size of two grocery carts abutting one another.  You also need to know that while sitting in the two front seats – you’re literally sitting on the floor of the car.  There is no backseat.  There’s a small console that rises up enough for a six-year old to fit on and stick a small puppy beside her on the floor next to her.  Groceries were in the trunk….directly behind the small console with the small child and little dog.  This mobile contraption was stuffed to the gills.

We were driving up River Street in West Springfield, went under the railroad overpass, and got to the front of the line facing a red light.  While idling there waiting for a green light, smoke started rising out of the hood.  Lots of smoke from under the hood.  Then a small red/orange flicker that looked like a lit candle.  More smoke.

The car was in first, so I put on the e-brake and turned the thing off.  Now  —  what to do next?  And —  think fast.   Get everyone out of the car.  My daughter and the puppy were no problem.  My 90-year old gimpy grandmother, sitting on the floor of a small container was no easy situation.  Did I also tell you that she has a heart condition, is blind in one eye, and doesn’t move very quickly?  The smoke is getting thicker and larger flames are happening.

I’m in the middle of two lanes struggling with keeping it together and trying to wrestle my grammy out of that tiny box called a sports car.  Out of nowhere a man appeared and asked if he could help.  Yes!!  Any help would be appreciated.  He seemed to have been walking along the sidewalk and saw the dilemma.  He easily extracted Nana out of the MG.  We headed for a garage diagonally across the street from the intersection.   Within a couple of minutes this man had everything under control, everyone safe, and everything taken care of.  I thanked him and he walked out of the garage.  I told my family I’d be right back, hoping to ask him if I could pay him for his help and thank him again.  It was only a minute.  I went outside and there was no-one there.  I ran to the sidewalk and looked up and down.  Went back to the garage and looked all around the area.  The place is wide open…..no ‘hidden’ areas.  The man who helped us was nowhere to be seen or found.  He was just gone.  I asked the mechanic at the garage if he knew the person who helped us….he didn’t see a man with us!

I’ve thanked this man so many times over the ensuing years and think that if he was a Guardian Angel he must certainly know how thankful we all were that he was there!!

–  ashanta

Jun 24 2016

Are Pentagrams Good or Evil?

Is the pentagram good or evil?  What a question!  It’s neither.  The pentangle is a symbol, a philosophy, a mathematical theory, and a tool.  From ancient times the pentagram has been used to better understand the Universe and man’s place within it.  Pythagoras used it to represent man.  DaVinci expanded upon his theory.  http://leonardodavinci.stanford.edu/submissions/clabaugh/history/leonardo.html

The number five has represented the five elements:  air, earth, water, fire, and aethyr (spirit).  Five represents the path Venus makes on her trip around the sky: https://johncarlosbaez.wordpress.com/2014/01/04/the-pentagram-of-venus/ .

The pentagram has also been used to illustrate the Golden Ratio:  http://www.livescience.com/37704-phi-golden-ratio.html .

The five-pointed star has been used for millennia on flags, on buildings, in cities, (i.e. Washington, D.C.), and even worn by early Christians to protect themselves against evil.  And yes – it’s used in ceremonial rituals and ceremonial magick.

When used in a mystical sense, the attitude that it is infused in the process is what matters – not the star’s orientation.  Point up or down makes no bit of difference one way or another.  One point up, two points up….really?  What fluff.  Point reference was started in the mid-19th century by a self-proclaimed, jealous, closed-minded magician who called himself Eliphas Levi.  His real name is Alphonse Louis Constant.  Mr. Levi / Constant was a Catholic, very dedicated to the church, who in his later years disavowed magic.  He perhaps came to his writings and teachings with a prejudiced inclination.  The pentagram as evil is really a 19th century folly.

People, usually enthralled with the concept of evil, for whatever reasons, were intrigued.  And, Hollywood, wanting to make money off these strong emotions, started producing films to build up the fenzy and make more money.  That brings us to Anton LeVey  and his Church of Satan.  LeVey, born Howard Stanton LeVey, jumped on the bandwagon seeing an opportunity to promote himself and make some bucks.  LeVey was always a showman, working from an early age in the circus and carnivals.  He was a gifted musician and a good businessman.  He was intelligent and had great marketing skills.

LeVey didn’t believe in Satan and he didn’t much care for what he considered the hypocrasy of humankind.  Go to bars and brothels during the week and then make a showing at church on Sunday.  In his teachings, LeVey promoted self-confidence and gave people the feeling of personal empowerment.  Who doesn’t want that?  He had some good thoughts on the subject, too.  Read his Nine Satanic Statements….not to shabby and nothing evil.

So, is the pentagram good or evil?  It’s entirely up to you.  What do you put into it?  If it’s good thoughts, it’s from within you.  If it’s evil — maybe you are, too.  Just remember the law of three.  What you wish for someone else is what you’ll get back times three.  That’s just the Universal Law of Reciprocity.

– ashanta

Jun 22 2016

An Historical Haunting

Cemeteries are interesting places. They all have an history to relate, but do it in different ways.  Some are beautiful, garden-like areas, some are plain and barren.  Some feel serene and others are a bit spooky.  Age doesn’t seem to matter as much as the pasts of those that now reside inside the spot.  Not all the residents are a peace and some do not rest.  The Old Burying Ground in historic Deerfield Village dates back to colonial times.  It isn’t scary,  but it isn’t at rest, either.  Sometimes things happen to people that takes more than one span of life to get over.

Back in the late 1600’s, Deerfield Village stood as a British settlement on their most northern frontier in Massachusetts.  It was home to about 200 +/- people who settled in the fertile land between the Connecticut and Deerfield rivers. Deerfield Village was incorporated in 1677. The area was prone to Indian attacks…..or Native American attacks for those more politically correct…  but during the winter of 1703/1704 an offshoot of the French & Indian War – Queen Anne’s War – the colonial settlement was ravaged by invaders.  About a quarter of the villagers were brutally massacred including women and children.  112 people were captured, taken prisoner, and marched to Canada.  Many died along the way.  On their way out of town, the raiders burned the village.  Almost half the houses were left in ashes

This gruesome incident left the remaining 112 settlers to pick up the carnage and carry on with life as it now was.  The 56 dead were taken to the burying ground where they were interred into a common mass grave.  The mound sits to the left rear of the cemetery and is marked by a single stele on top of the rise.  Many years ago when we visited that spot a friend took a picture.  When it was developed it showed a grey mist resembling a woman standing at the bottom.  Nothing showed on the negative, but it was clear on the print.  Wish I knew what happened to that shot so I could share it.The small cemetery is located on Albany Road just off of Old Main Street in the town’s center. It’s a pretty spot and its age shows.

On a more recent visit we spent some time reading all the headstones and marveling at the many intricately designed markers which depict the funerary artwork of the day. If you stay awhile, walk around, and read the stones in stone, a lot can be learned about some of the inhabitants and their families that lie close.  You also get the feeling you aren’t alone.  Twigs crack as if someone was stepping on them.  Shadows move through the markers.  And, the place has an energy of its own.  It’s a palpable energy.  It tells its own story.  If you go, how did it make you feel?

 

–   ashanta

 

 

 

 

May 28 2016

UFO’s or Just Weird?

I think this Universe is far too large for us to be alone, but I don’t know that I believe in beings flying around in spaceships en route to visit Earth.  Although one of the many theories I’ve contemplated is that we are the Martians.  There are so many theories to think about and investigate that all have merit, but that’s for another time.  Strange things do happen and many phenomena have been observed that defy reasonable explanation and have for thousands of years.

Many years ago, I went to a conference in Hartford CT for my employer.  The event concluded around 10:30 p.m.  I got on I-95 and started heading North towards home.  Thankfully, there wasn’t much traffic.  About six miles from the Springfield MA exit there was a large light in the sky moving from East to West at quite a clip.  Since Bradley Airport isn’t far away, I didn’t think much about it.  But, the light suddenly turned rapidly and started heading back toward the East.  This isn’t a maneuver typical of aircraft that I’m familiar with.  The light also got larger.

Next thing I know it was about two hours later and I found myself driving South on I-95 and heading back toward Hartford.  No – I didn’t drink at the seminar and I have no other recollection of anything.  0vertired?  Brain lapse?  Missing time?  I don’t know.

Then not long ago, I thought I was asleep and maybe I was.  But there was another brilliant light.  Nothing else was there, just this very large light.  Next thing, I find myself in this darkened round place looking out through a huge window at the star-filled night sky.  It was beautiful.  There were others around.  I could hear them talking and they spoke to me.  I never saw any of them though.  They told me I was going to travel out into space.  This was getting a bit scary – especially being, not a little, afraid of heights.  They put some sort of helmet on me and strapped me onto this small machine-like thing.  It was all open; there were no enclosures. Then this seat thing started to move toward that window.  The window didn’t open and I thought for sure I would crash right into it.  Instead,  I moved through it easily.  I could look down and see lights coming up from Earth – cities perhaps.  And the stars were fantastic.  The whole trip was amazing.

Next thing I knew, I was sitting up in bed thinking that was one heck of a dream.  It was like it was real and it was very vivid.  Still is.

So, what are these lights?  Many people have all kinds of experiences with various kinds of lights in different situations.  Perhaps it’s a natural energy that we need to study and learn more about.  Or maybe visitors bring it with them.  Or maybe it’s something from the other side of this existence we call being alive.  Whatever it is, I’d really like to know more about it.

–  ashanta