A Lesson in Haunting

                       My name is Jacob Bedrosian. I am a professor of Victorian history at the College of Wordsworth in Ainsley, Massachusetts, just outside of Salem. Some, including many of those who I have instructed over the years, will call me the late Dr. Bedrosian. 

           Some bizarre incidents seem to say that death has not taken me from the halls of Wordsworth. I continue to make my presence known. In my former history department office a computer seems to boot up on its own before every lecture class. In my former lecture hall a pointer falls noisily to the floor in front of a whiteboard and the lights blink on and off in the middle of every lesson on the Salem witch trials. Does this prove that a force considered beyond the grave can influence the young minds entrusted to those who have taken on the mantle of my professorship?

            For 30 years I carefully unfolded the theories and realities of authors who explored the tales of those who sought to both prove and debunk myths often associated with witchcraft in this strange and mysterious area along the New England coast.

           Many have said that my so-called demise from tuberculosis did not come from natural causes, but as punishment for the fact that my studies came too close to validating those occurrences for which those who belonged to the covens of Salem met their deaths during Colonial times.

          For many years I studied witchcraft under the glare of scientifically-inspired research. I have found that there exist many occurrences in our human experience that traditional science cannot completely explain. At the same time, I see no reason why scientific logic cannot be applied to solve most mysteries of our universe. Just because science cannot explain something does not mean that humans should be ostracized or persecuted for believing in these occurrences.

    My dogged pursuit of the unexplained has, I believe, led to my departure from normal human existence. Yet, I will not give up on my pursuit of these things just because those who do not approve of my studies believe they have caused my non-existence. Thus, I will continue to pursue my research from the world outside human existence until I am satisfied that I have reached my goals.

     I believe my pursuit will not result in the end of my existence but will help me continue the journey necessitated by my studies. Many will consider it "haunting." I feel everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, so let the duality continue.

      I see no reason to harm those who disagree with me and I hope those who disagree with me will be open-minded enough not to interrupt my research or try to put an end to it.

        A little bit of my background–I became a young teaching assistant at Wordsworth in 1996. I concentrated my studies on a somewhat "normal" pursuit—fascinated by the rich history and folklore of Southern New England.

        Then, as I probed deeper, it was difficult to scratch beneath the surface without uncovering bizarre tales of what many, particularly in Colonial times, considered the often unnecessary awakening of evil forces in the nether world.

        Many people, especially young women, lost their lives because either the uninformed or the politically ambitious convinced those in charge that they had come too close to this evil world and risked spreading it into the "real" world.

        As I dug deeper and deeper into the beliefs of both those supposedly practicing and promoting the occult and those opposed to those beliefs, I found dangerous and narrow-minded forces intent on keeping any pursuit of the answer buried with those who came close to coming to positive conclusions.

        I researched every type of academic resource and followed every lead along every dark and complicated path. Often colleagues, relatives and friends warned me to discontinue my pursuit or the forces of evil would make sure that I would not uncover what they wanted hidden forever.

         Then, about 28 years into my research, I got the first taste of what my acquaintances had warned me about. I sat in front of my laptop in my history department office one evening probing the story of Bridget Bishop. Hanged on June 10, 1692, she was the first person executed and became the test case for the court's controversial acceptance of "spectral evidence."

         Spectral evidence was a type of courtroom testimony in 1692 where accusers claimed a person's spirit, or specter, appeared in visions or dreams to torment them. Judges allowed it because they believed the Devil could not take the shape of an innocent person.

          Suddenly, my laptop screen went black and the lights in my office began blinking on and off sporadically. Then my cellphone rang and a person identifying himself as the chairman of the Good Conscience Committee told me:

      "Members of our committee have become very concerned about your so-called studies. You are messing with forces which can bring great harm to yourself, your family and our entire community. Please cease this activity at once."

       The person hung up without warning and my computer and the lights in my office returned to normal. This lasted for about two weeks and then I began experiencing persistent coughing which lasted about three weeks. I started coughing up blood and sputum. Then came chest pain, unexplained weight loss, fatigue, fever, and heavy night sweats.

       The tuberculosis which eventually took away my existence in the physical world lasted on and off for two years. Then I suddenly fell into what felt like a deep sleep. My doctors could not revive me and they declared me legally dead.

       They didn't know that my consciousness survived long after my "natural departure". I found myself caught up in a strange dimension, somewhere in a different reality. In that world I encountered many of the people who had been convicted during the Salem witch trials and many who had died at young ages while trying to explore whether or not witchcraft had any basis in reality.

        I also discovered that I had acquired a strange new power which enabled me to communicate via e-mail with a former colleague in the university's Victorian history department. 

       That colleague began publishing an online treatise on what we jointly uncovered about the existence of the forces behind witchcraft. The day before the posting of the completed treatise he died and my special abilities and consciousness suddenly ended.