GABBY Concepcion
Halloween is meant for lunar-powered creatures comme moi. Aside from pumpkins, costumes and masks, what would “Trick or Treat” season be without ghost stories? So I cornered some celebs and asked them to share their close encounters with the “otherworldy” kind. Mine would be more of ghosts of boyfriends past. Whatever or whoever haunts you, may you have a bewitching Halloween. Carpe Noctem!
Gabby Concepcion
I was 10 years old when it happened. In our ancestral home in San Juan, I took a shower. The water was very cold. Suddenly, the ceiling ‘manhole door’ (small entry point to ceiling) suddenly opened. A black figure with huge black eyes peeked and stared at me. I freaked out! I stood frozen, still and silent. Then like a flash, the ceiling door shut and the figure disappeared. I ran out of the shower half-naked. My parents saw how frightened I look. So they had the security check the ceiling but nothing and nobody was found. Did I freak out or did i freak IT out? To this day, I can’t figure it out.
Rita Avila
RITA Avila recalls seeing an apparition.
I woke up hearing someone sneezing behind me. I had goosebumps right away because I was alone that night. Then I saw a boy, about two years old, sitting on the pillow. He was wearing a white kamiseta. He tried to reach out for my hand, as if he wanted to play. I tried to shout but no voice came out. This happened before I got preggy.
Jed Madela
It happened in a majestic Spanish house converted into a hotel in Bohol. I stayed at the master suite. While I was resting, I hung my jacket on the wooden chair. Then I saw the jacket move like it was being blown. I thought it was the aircon. But suddenly the chair also moved. I just froze. Then next thing I felt was that, I was being pinned down by someone on top of me and breathing inches away from my face. I tried to turn away but I could still feel it following the direction of my face. I prayed aloud to St. Benedict (protector against evil spirits) and then it moved away. From then on, I never leave home without the medal of St. Benedict hanging around my neck.
Aiko Melendez
No major ghost story. Just paramdam. A friend of mine committed suicide. I was praying that God would forgive him for taking his own life. Then I got goosebumps. It felt like a cold wind was hugging me.
Ronnie Quizon
It happened in our vacation house in Baguio. Epy, Eric, Donna, our friend and I were fooling around. We all knew that there were dwarfs and ghosts in our house. We could hear all sorts of noises like banging and knocking. It must have been the beings that didn’t like the ruckus we were making. When the rest went to bed, my friend and I had a few drinks with our driver. We heard creepy noises, which we ignored. My friend asked me to accompany him to the bathroom because he was scared. I found it so ridiculous. I teased him about being a coward. Then we heard a mocking kind of laugh, like the laughter of old witches in movies. It scared the hell out of us!
John Arcilla
One gloomy day, I fetched my sis, who stayed at a dorm in Sta. Ana. While we were walking to the car, something prompted me to look back at the dorm. A 40-something guy, standing in the veranda, was looking at my sister. I can vividly remember [how he looked]. It felt like my sister broke his heart. It was a ladies’ dorm so I assumed the guy I saw was the owner. When I told my sis about what I saw, she said that there was no guy in the dorm and nobody can stand in the veranda because it’s filled with empty cases of beer. It still sends chills down my spine when I remember that creepy experience.
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MJ Halloween
MICHAEL Jackson impersonator Jericho Valencia
Michael Jackson fanatics unite! “MJ Thriller Halloween Night” is happening on Oct. 30, 8 p.m. at The Crowd Bar in Madison Square, Pioneer St., Mandaluyong. It will feature fantastic MJ impersonators Jericho Valencia and Julius Doria. Watching them perform makes it seem like MJ had been reincarnated! Special guest is Freshmen Band and entrance fee is P100.
The King of Pop is a thriller like no other who has moonwalked into our hearts. It’s gonna be a Hallo-winner!
Personal
My thanks to University of the Philippines’ Speech Communication Association (UP SPECA), especially to Monica Tulio for considering me worthy enough to be their resource person at their ACLE (Alternative Classroom Learning Experience) series. It felt so good to be back in my beloved alma mater. UP SPECA welcomed me “home” with open arms.