In 1965, I was 13 years old and lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. My father's best friend, Buddy, lost his wife during heart surgery that summer, and it was upsetting to all of us. He and Dad worked together, we kids grew up together, and the moms were good friends, too. Her death happened very fast. Emergency heart surgery, and she died on the table. She was terried going into the surgery, so it was more horrible that she suffered by being so afraid.


About a month after she died, Buddy came over to our house to visit. All went well until he got up to leave and stood by the front door saying his goodbyes. I was in a chair against the far wall, my dad was sitting on the sofa across from me, my mom in a chair to my left, and Buddy was to my right. Everyone was talking and my mom was smoking, and I looked toward her and noticed this strange smoke ring suspended in the air about two feet in front of her. At first I thought, "Cool! I wonder how she did that?"

But then the ring sort of flipped over and over very slowly in front of us. It was maybe a foot wide. It just keep doing that... and then I realized I was the only one seeing it. I tried to be calm and not freak out. I could just feel the panic building, and all I could do was stare at it.

After about a minute, to my relief, I noticed my dad seemed to see it, too, turning to give it a second glance. It just dissipated when he moved his head to look at it. We never talked about it. At the time -- and even now -- I think it was Mrs.

Buddy visiting. She was very much in our thoughts at that time and my mom had been having dreams about her appearing and trying to talk. So I suspect she was paying us a visit. I never saw the smoke ring again.

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