In 1963 Sheila sat in one of her favorite places in the little village of Summerhouse. It was a small platform where the milk cans would be placed for pick up, but they had been collected and it left a lovely little observation platform for a small child to sit on. It was a warm summer’s day, maybe a little too warm. The air felt full of moisture, even though it was not raining.
Sheila sat and watched the cars pass by. The road was not busy in 1963, and most of the cars that passed were driven by locals and waved or tooted when they saw Sheila on her perch. Johnny Conner, the crazy man on the bike, passed by. Sheila froze. He had a metal plate in his head and he was a little unpredictable. That is what her mum told her. As he passed he looked up at Sheila. “Something is coming, you had better hide”.
Sheila just laughed as he disappeared down the road. He certainly was going fast. It was one of his crazier days.
Then she heard another noise. It sounded like a train was coming. No trains in Summerhouse. A sudden wind started to blow. Sheila climbed down from her observation platform and crawled underneath it. Maybe something was coming. It sounded like a Ghost Train.
Then she saw it. A big white funnel. A whirlwind. It bore down on the village, right down the middle of the road. It passed by her, scaring her half to death, she couldn’t move or take her eyes off it. It made huge a huge whooshing noise as it passed by. She felt it tugging at her. It wanted her. Sheila was scared now. The whirlwind turned off the road and enveloped the house on the green. Sheila watched as the roof was raised a few inches. Then the whirlwind moved on by. It crossed the road gobbling up the farm buildings. Bales of hay flew into the air. Sheila saw a face in that wind. A face with a hungry mouth that was eating things as it passed by. What was that, did it pick up a cow?
She clung on to the post that held up the milk platform, terrified that the hungry wind would come back to get her.
Finally the wind disappeared in the distance, but Sheila stayed put. She was too afraid to come out of her hiding place.
A big lorry pulled up beside where she hid. It was the man who returned the empty milk cans.
“Help” she said weakly.
He stopped and listened.
“Help” she said again.
He bent down and looked under the platform. “Sheila” what are you doing under there?” he said.
“Hiding from the hungry wind” she said. He laughed at her. “Come on let’s get you home” he said as he took her hand and walked her across the road to her house.
Crazy Johnny almost ran into them on his bike as they crossed the road “All Clear, all clear, danger over” he shouted as he passed by.
Sheila looked at him thoughtfully. Maybe he wasn’t quite so crazy after all.
To read more about Sheila and her adventures, premonitions, and encounters read my two short stories. They are both available as E-Books, as well as paperbacks from Amazon.
My first full length novel, which follows Sheila to Germany in the early eighties, will be released in Spring. Sheila fights for her life as she encounters evil in many forms.
