The Lady in White

by Melody Watkins
(Maryland, USA)

When I was younger, when we lived in Maryland, we were the caretakers of small church. It was the very first black church in all of Maryland, established sometime in the 18th century. We lived in what used to be the pastors home. It was a small home with only a living room, large room upstairs and a tiny kitchen that you, Mom, made the best cakes in all the world out of.

One lovely day, I was playing in the upstairs. There was a large window in that room that looked out to the neighbors yard. As I looked out, not really knowing why I was looking, I saw a woman, dressed in white. I turned away and looked back again, curious. She was gone. I went outside and looked for her. She simply had disappeared. I had the biggest goosebumps in my life.

I loved that little house.

Oh, yea, I almost forgot. Right between the church and the house was a graveyard, with about 2 dozen graves. Behind us was a train track. On the other side of the track, there were even more headstones, most having been worn from the passage of time.

Maybe that has something to do with the feeling of that place. All I know is it was a great time in my life.