With Halloween so soon, most people are planning their costumes or watching scary movies.
Because of my love of Halloween, I wrote a story for The Argonaut about Ridenbaugh Hall and investigated the building late at night. Nothing paranormal happened, but the building did give me the creeps. According to various campus legends, there are some supposedly haunted buildings on campus.
Lindsay Trombly | Argonaut
Everyone should take a step into the paranormal world. Even though nothing happened during my late-night trip, I’m convinced the paranormal does exist.
According to USA Today, HuffPost and a YouGov poll of a thousand people, about 45 percent think the paranormal exists. Those are people who said they believe that ghosts or spirits of the dead can come back in certain places and situations, according to the 2012 data. Some 32 percent also said ghosts or spirits can hurt living people, while 43 percent said ghosts (if they are real) are harmless.
How do they know this or why do they think this? Usually, it’s because of real-life experience. Still, there are many non-believers about the paranormal.
People don’t believe in the paranormal as much anymore because these scenarios are under-investigated or called simply “a silly thing that isn’t real.” People need to open their minds to the creepy history surrounding where they live and beyond. They need to believe that it exists and investigate for many reasons.
Everyone knows about at least one spooky place in every state that has been investigated. Paranormal occurrences have happened to people all over the Unites States. Even though horror movies portray them in a certain light — they often happen.
In order to believe, people need to travel out of their comfort zone to these places that have a haunted stigma late at night and sit in a dark room. Bring a spirit box or even a Ouija Board. You don’t know for sure if you are being silly, until you experience the unknown.
Pew Research notes in 2009, 29 percent of people have been in touch with the dead and 18 percent have been in a presence with a ghost.
While some people have had spiritual encounters, there is still a chance you may have one in your lifetime. Keep your eyes peeled and your mind open to the endless opportunities of encountering something.
Students on campus are convinced Ridenbaugh is haunted because of their experiences and there are others who have had something happen to them on campus or even off.
We need to learn the unknown and help spirits pass on to the afterlife — investigating these horrible sites might help them. In addition to understanding the afterlife, it can give a great story to tell.
Investigating these sites opens your mind to the unknown and sets you on an adventure with friends you will remember for the rest of your life.
Even though there is no paranormal group on campus, there is The Paranormal Society of The Palouse for students and the Moscow community to join and channel their inner paranormal curiosities. If you don’t want to go alone and freak yourself out — go with them.
So remember, travel to a spooky or haunted place and be open to it. Oh, and read my article in The Argonaut about the supposedly haunted Ridenbaugh Hall.
Lindsay Trombly can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @lindsay_trombly