About a year ago, my good friend Danny went through a rough break up with his girlfriend of three years due to something he labelled as a “distance issue”. He claimed that during the last year of his relationship, he and his girlfriend’s main form of communication was Facebook messenger and Snapchat. When he split with his girlfriend, she cut off all contact with him and blacklisted his phone number which created a huge empty gap in his life, in which he spent many hours blankly staring at his cellphone expecting texts from his ex-girlfriend. Danny admits that he was in a state of “psychological distraught” because he believed that he was still in a relationship with his ex, and he even went so far to believe that he was even communicating with her via text messages. Now this is where the story gets interesting; how on earth was he able to talk to his ex through text messaging when they cut off contact months after their breakup? Well, Danny was going through so much emotional trauma during this time period that he was fully convinced that he was still in a relationship with his girlfriend. But how do you explain Danny’s assertion that he was still texting her? Although he never admitted that a “cyber ghost” was communicating with his through his cell phone, the same idea can be applied in this situation. Danny claims that his girlfriend had sent him ordinary/casual text messages such as “I miss you” or “let’s go to the movies” or “let’s hang out”. Clearly, Danny was so intent on the fact that he and his girlfriend were still in touch, but from a rational standpoint, his belief seems implausible, as his number was blocked on his ex’s cell phone. This situation raises the question whether Danny’s conversations with his girlfriend is just a manifestation of his psychological and emotional state, or was really a unknown cyber entity that participated in Danny’s imaginary relationship.

From Danny’s perspective, a loved one who was a major part of his life suddenly ceased to exist, and an event as abrupt as this resulted in serious consequences to his mentality. The fact that his girlfriend sent him texts could be an unsettling “cyberghost” phenomenon that sent Danny text messages as a cruel ploy to make him think he is still in a relationship. More realistically, this “cyberghost” was merely a creation of Danny’s imagination as a coping method to deal with the emotional pain. Nevertheless, the fact that Danny received text messages from his girlfriend who blocked all forms of communication is a very intriguing and interesting story to be discussed.

The interviewer’s comments are denoted through initials GM, while the interviewee’s responses are denoted by a VA.

GM: Has anything happened to you or your family that you can tell me about regarding a weird text or something cyber-related that you couldn’t explain – like an anomaly?

VA: My aunt’s friend died 7 years ago in a car accident. It was a hit and run, and the driver escaped and was never caught. My aunt got a text 3 years later from her deceased friend’s number, with a very cryptic message. The text said “Hey Kaira. Car that killed me: LP3 WQ56.” In shock, my aunt didn’t know what to do – she simply kept the phone in her trembling hand. A minute later, she received another text that provided her a location – what or who was at that location, she had no idea.

My aunt tried to use “Find My iPhone”, tried calling the cell provider company, but they told her the number simply didn’t exist. My aunt left for the location, purely motivated by her friend’s death and a will to find out the truth. She showed up at the location, and the conversation had deleted itself.  She found herself inside an empty shack or garage – just like a horror movie. Even though she was really freaking out, she looked around a bit, only to find absolutely nothing – no trace of anyone residing or even visiting the area. Eventually, she was far too scared to continue waiting for something to happen. She left and never received a text or call from that number again, but to this day she is forever fearful of her phone.

She is one of the few in our family to actually believe in ghosts, and she still maintains that that night she was texted by the ghost of her friend – she was just too late to find the killer. She never informed the police because the conversation was gone and she had no proof, but she told me this story to forever remember that there are supernatural powers always watching our actions.

Conclusion, written by the interviewer:

This story shows the modern adaptation of ghostly belief. Initially, ghosts were only seen or felt: if they were far, they were irrelevant. However, the evolution of technology and the presence of it in every aspect of our lives has given rise to cyber ghosts that can contact us in many different ways. This creates deeper mystery and fear, and, in the case of this story, can allow for action. While this story shows ties to much older beliefs, like regret over a friend or relative’s death, it allows text messages to bring the story into a very possible modern day experience that drove my interviewee’s aunt to do things she never rationally would.