The cat on the cover of Ley Lines for Ghost Hunters – An Introduction was waiting for me when I parked at a rural New Hampshire cemetery.
He looked at me with interest, and promptly stretched out in the parking lot, waiting for me to pet him.
Of course, I did. His fur was soft and fluffy, and almost glistening in the late afternoon sunlight.
He looked at me, a little curiously — and a little bored — and I asked if he’d like to go into the nearby cemetery for some photos. (It was a real “fingers crossed” moment, because really… a black cat in a cemetery…? That’s perfect!)
He not only stood up, to follow me into the cemetery, but then he took the lead.
He seemed to read my mind as he walked ahead of me and looked around. It was as if he wanted to choose the best location for his photos.
I followed him, chatting as if he could understand every word… and maybe he did. It was a magical moment, and I knew it.
He strolled around for a few minutes, before choosing the gravestones he liked. He sat down about ten feet from one that seemed to interest him, and rolled onto his side, glancing back at me.
I sat down next to him, and stroked his shiny fur some more. He closed his eyes and seemed to bask in the moment. Then, he rolled over, stood up, and he was ready to strike a few poses for me.
I followed him as he posed as the perfect, real-life “Halloween cat” icon: At an ancient gravestone, with his back arched and his tail slightly bent.
Of course, I took photos… lots of them, as he walked around.
He seemed pleased.
I knew the light was failing, so I began packing my camera gear. However, Mr. Cat had one more surprise for me.
Before I left, he paused and stared at something. I wasn’t sure what it was, but it was a good pose, so I took several photos.
Then, he seemed to lose interest in me, escorted me to the cemetery gate, and walked off in another direction.
When I returned home and studied the photos, those last-minute pictures include an anomaly… exactly where he was looking. And, it’s in four consecutive photos.
I’ll publish those photos, later. The cat will appear on the covers of several of my upcoming books, as well.
For now, I wanted to share the story with you.
At Halloween, when you visit a haunted cemetery, you never know what will happen.
Thank you, Mr. Cat!
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when a dog or cat goes out of its way to get my attention, I pay attention. no matter where we’re at. there is something going on. better to find out first then to ignore and be sorry later. maybe nothing but many times something was wrong. and taken care of. I am one who gets involved. your cat was, yes, letting you know there were spirits waiting for you. these animals are psychic. my Tony, a dog, definately was and is. how he boggles my mind. he can read my mind and tell me things. awesome. he’s been gone for years now, but not really. sitting here watching me write this. oh yes…I see him.
Our log cabin sits back in the woods and was built in the late 1790s. Many stories past and present…the local college researched the house and found that the original owners were massacred by Indians. Today’s story about the cat made me want to share our black cat story. Every fall, we have activity that cannot be explained-but every couple of years we get wowed! We had a black cat named Cosmo for about 13 years. He was getting sickly and two summers ago he disappeared. We called and looked for him for weeks. We really missed him. Last fall,we were talking about how it was about a year since we last saw him, and how we missed him. My husband went to bed, and I went out on the deck to relax and read my book by the small deck lamps. As I was reading, I felt a cat rub against my legs. Thinking it was our other cat(Joey), I reached down to pet him and felt his hair quite matted as well as his bones through his fur. Looking down, it was Cosmo! I picked him up and ran for my husband to get up and come out. We both marveled over him, petted him and listened to him purr and snuggle. I left him with my husband while I went and got a brush and some food and water. My husband went back to bed and I took Cosmo (we called him Cozzy) into the garage to set him up for the night. He was not interested in food or water, but snuggled into the blanket bed I made for him. My husband and I had no idea how he could have survived a year away and still wander home when he was in the condition he was in. The next morning, eager to see him, I went to the garage to find him gone. He hadn’t touched the food or water. We have not seen him since. I so wish that I had taken a picture of him and had put him in his cat carrier – it would make the whole thing real. I worried that he needed to go to the vet, or he was gone and did he really visit? It seems his spirit came back to visit us and to say goodbye. We still miss our beautiful Cozzy.