I don't have a very strong opinion as to whether ghosts are real or not as I haven't experienced much myself, but here's some things I've experienced.
My mum has told me several times of something weird that used to happen in our old house. I was about 2 years old at the time and my dad was working night shifts. This was before my sister was born so it was just me and my mum at home. My mums would walk into the living room on such nights as these and find me standing by the table looking at the chair and talking, listening, nodding, bringing things over and laughing to someone who my mum could not see. Sometimes I would look up suddenly as if I had been called and run over to a spot in the house, usually that chair, and do the same things again.
I was never one to have imaginary friends, however, so this wasn't the explanation. It could happen anywhere in the house. Whenever my mum asked me who I was talking to, I would say that it was a man. I was never frightened of him but seemed to enjoy his comfort, but it unnerved my mum nevertheless! But she never saw him or had any ghost experiences other than this.
I don't remember anything about this, other than being able to describe a man who I can picture in my head that as far as I know I have never met in my life. When I've described him to my mum, she said he sounds like her grandfather, who I never met but was a very kindly man. When I saw a picture of him it was exactly like this man who I can picture in my head. Could this man have been a spirit of my great grandfather? Or perhaps a guardian angel, if there are such things?
We now live in a new house (I'm now 17) and as far as we know no one has passed away here other than our pets. But sometimes when I'm in my room at night I get the feeling that I'm being watched, especially when I have my back to the room and I'm facing the wall. I sometimes see black shapeless something's moving but I always shut my eyes out of fright before I can get a good look at them.
Another thing that sometimes happens in my room is that I hear this crackling noise, especially when I'm thinking about ghosts and the like, and it grows louder. If I cover my ears I can't hear it and it usually goes away after a while. Is there any explanation for this? I think it's just me being scared if the dark, which I am, but I'm curious anyway!
One other thing, my cat recently passed again and every now and then I think I see he walking past the door. It just got me thinking, can animals return as ghosts?
I sometimes get premonitions of when something is going to happen, I don't know if that can explain anything that I have explained above, but if someone can answer any of my questions I would really appreciate it, thank you!