The afterlife has long been a source of both wonder and dread. People keep asking: where do souls wander after death? Could some beings actually pass beyond the veil, glimpse heaven or hell, and then return to share what they saw? Might the living still hold a line of communication with those who have crossed over, receiving messages or signs from the departed? This roundup of the top 10 stories dives into exactly those uncanny encounters.
Top 10 Stories Overview
10 Knock Jokes
Four‑year‑old Jacie O’Brien was still reeling from the loss of her father in the September 11 attacks when her mother, Lisa, walked into an empty room and found her daughter deep in conversation with someone she could not see. When Lisa asked who she was talking to, Jacie answered that she was chatting with “Daddy,” who was busy telling her a series of knock‑knock jokes.
To test the claim, Lisa showed Jacie a photograph of her father alongside his coworkers—many of whom had also perished that day. Remarkably, the little girl recited each full name, even those she had never met. She also mentioned spotting her dad swinging on a playground swing while she was playing with friends.
9 Please Be Careful
Renowned horror novelist Dean Koontz found himself living a plot twist of his own in September 1988. While at work, a faint, garbled voice reached him over the phone, repeatedly whispering, “Please, be careful.”
He pressed for an identity, but the woman only echoed the warning three more times, each iteration growing weaker. The tone sounded unmistakably like his mother’s, yet she had been dead for nearly two decades.
Two days later Koontz visited his father, who was a resident of a care facility and had recently begun displaying violent outbursts, such as punching another patient. Koontz intended to calm him down.
The moment Koontz entered his father’s room, the older man seized a fishing knife and lunged, trying to stab his son. Koontz wrestled the weapon away and hurried out, only to run straight into a group of police officers who, seeing the knife, aimed their guns at him. He dropped the knife, convinced the officers that his father was the true threat, and they stood down.
Reflecting on the eerie phone call, Koontz became convinced that the unseen voice had saved his life by urging extra vigilance. He never received another such call.
8 Tony
In October 2010, twenty‑year‑old Tony Woodmansee survived a catastrophic crash that hurled him through his car’s windshield, only to succumb to his injuries a week later. At his funeral, two close friends disclosed to his mother, Sally, that they had scheduled a session with a medium before Tony’s death, and the appointment date coincided exactly with the day of his burial.
Sally, initially skeptical, was told that Tony was attempting to make contact. Soon after, kitchen utensils began moving on their own and the television and car radio flickered on and off without explanation.
Spooked, Sally consulted the medium, who confirmed a blond‑haired young man—a description matching Tony—wanted to reach her. She was instructed to try automatic spiritual writing. In the darkness of the early morning, she placed a pen to paper, feeling an unseen force guide her hand. When she illuminated the page, the name “Tony” was clearly written.
Four years on, Sally reports having filled twenty A4 notebooks with messages she attributes to her son, insisting that the hand moving the pen belongs to Tony, even as skeptics remain unconvinced.
7 Texting from the Grave
Back in 1988, Frank Jones and his family endured a series of unsettling phenomena in their Blackpool home—covers being ripped from beds, doors slamming, taps turning on without anyone nearby—so intense that they summoned a church to perform a spiritual cleansing.
The poltergeist activity subsided for five years, but tragedy soon struck: Frank’s son passed away, followed three months later by his wife, Sadie, who was buried with her beloved cellphone.
Shortly after Sadie’s funeral, Frank noticed a missed call on his phone that never rang. The call originated from his own landline inside the house, an impossibility since no one else was present. He then caught the scent of Sadie’s perfume and her favorite cigarettes drifting through the rooms.
To his astonishment, Frank also began receiving text messages from Sadie’s cellphone. The messages comprised phrases she habitually used while alive, yet the sender number never displayed on the screen.
6 I’m Watching
Jack Froese, a Pennsylvania resident, suffered a fatal heart arrhythmia in June 2011 at the age of 32, leaving his friends and family reeling from the loss.
Five months later, his best friend Tim Hart was scrolling through his phone when an unexpected email appeared to have been sent from Jack’s own account. The subject line read, “I’m watching,” and the body contained three terse sentences: “Did you hear me? I’m at your house. Clean your f‑ing attic!!!”
Tim was stunned, recalling that he and Jack had been the only ones in the attic shortly before Jack’s death, and they had discussed what to do with the extra space.
Jack’s cousin Jimmy McGraw also claimed to have received a posthumous email, warning that he would break his ankle. Within a week, Jimmy indeed suffered a broken ankle, lending eerie credibility to the message.
5 Purple Flowers
After 64 years of marriage, Vinto Scarabello’s wife passed away in August 2014. Determined to honor her memory, Vinto began visiting her gravesite each Sunday, bringing fresh flowers from his garden or the local florist.
Every time he replaced the wilted bouquet, he discovered that the new flowers had mysteriously turned purple, his late wife’s favorite hue. While florists offered a botanical explanation—flowers can turn purple as they age—Vinto insists the color shift is a miraculous sign from his departed spouse, even prompting him to return to church.
4 The Lad’s Done Well
Actress Maureen Lipman completed the autobiography of her late husband, Jack Rosenthal, after his 2004 death, later portraying herself in the televised adaptation titled Jack Rosenthal’s Last Act in 2006.
Years later, while critiquing a draft of her son Adam’s novel, Maureen advised him on a character named Enk. Soon after, a notification popped up on her phone: a text from Jack that read, “The lad’s done well—Enk.”
Although Maureen acknowledges the possibility that the message could be an old, delayed text, she believes Jack sent it deliberately to reassure her that their son was thriving and needed less parental pressure.
3 Butterfly
Amanda lost her six‑year‑old daughter, Azalee, to cancer in 2013. When Amanda later remarried Chip in 2015, she wanted to honor Azalee’s memory at her own wedding, arranging for a photographer to capture images of her daughter alongside the ceremony.
During the butterfly release meant to commemorate Azalee, dozens fluttered away, yet one radiant butterfly lingered, alighting gently on Amanda’s dress. The moment moved both bride and groom to tears, and Amanda interprets the lingering butterfly as a loving sign from her little girl, affirming her happiness and encouraging Amanda to embrace the new chapter.
2 Smiley Face
The Callaghan family adored their rescue dog Bandit, treating him as a true family member. After enduring multiple health issues and surgeries, Bandit passed away at the age of 15, leaving a palpable void in the household.
Two days later, Catie Callaghan stepped into the backyard and noticed Bandit’s water bowl still sitting. In the remaining water, a perfect smiley face had formed, which Catie took as Bandit’s gentle message that he was at peace and that the family need not worry, despite skeptics attributing it to natural water droplets.
1 Robin
Four‑year‑old Jack Robinson succumbed to a brain tumor in 2014, leaving behind his parents, an identical twin brother, and three sisters. His mother, Marie, visited his gravesite regularly, and on April 1 2017—marking the third anniversary of his death—she asked him for a sign that he was okay.
As she settled on the tombstone, a robin swooped down, landing briefly on her foot, then hopping onto a nearby gravestone before returning to perch on her hand and even her shoulder, all while she filmed the extraordinary encounter.
Marie felt certain that the bird was the unmistakable reassurance she had begged for. Historically, robins have been linked to the afterlife in folklore, symbolizing the bridge between worlds.
Estelle, residing in Gauteng, South Africa, contributed this story.