A Visitation In The Night

So this is going back 20 odd years to when I was a small child. I had a tendency to have vivid dreams and sleep walk but this experience stands out to the point that I remember every little detail.

My nan died 6 years previous to me being born so I never met her, though my mum had a photograph of her in the dining room so I knew her face. I remember my mum tucking me into bed and turning my light off leaving me to sleep.

I'll try and describe my childhood bedroom. This is described as if I am sitting on my bed. So I slept in a single bed in the middle of two built in wardrobes which were either side of me. Opposite my bed were some drawers and a dressing table, also built-in, which had a TV on it. My door was in the far right corner from my bed and a window to the left.

One night, I woke up in the middle of the night (as most young children do) and sat up. I remember my lamp being on and as I looked, there was a lady in a blue dressing gown smiling at me and she introduced herself as my nan.

I remember asking something along the lines of why have I never met you and the conversation turning to her telling me how she would love to take me to the park or to the shop to get some sweets and I remember jumping out of bed telling her she could and taking her hand, walking out of my bedroom door, turning on the hall lights, walking down the stairs to the front door. I vividly remember her protesting telling me no, it's not possible, we can't go and me insisting my mum wouldn't mind.

Then I got to the door, reaching for the handle and realising it was dark outside. My front door had glass built into it. I remember asking why it was dark, turning around and being alone. I went back upstairs to check; no one was there. I went down the stairs and looked under the stairs thinking she was hiding. No one was there. I was so upset when the reality hit and I burst out crying.

My mum remembers finding me crying under the stairs in the night and describing the lady I had spoken to. As I've gotten older, she's reflected on this, telling me of the significance of the blue dressing gown that she wore almost constantly when in her final days of cancer.

I've always felt something around me and on many occasions, from various psychics and clairvoyants, both myself and my mum have been told of my nan watching over us. Apparently she always stays in our house and sits on the stairs. I've had an ex-boyfriend tell me he's seen the bottom of a lady's blue skirt standing at the top of said stairs. I know she's there and it is not frightening.

The thing is, I just don't know if this was a real encounter or a dream. The fact I remember this so vividly from so long ago makes me feel it is a real experience. I would love to hear your thoughts.