Unhallowed ground

The area around the neighborhood looked similar to this

At some point in our lives, I am sure that most of us have gone into homes or other buildings and not been comfortable in them...but we were unsure as to why that was...it was just a sense of unease that we felt. But what if it's not just a house, but a whole neighborhood that gave you a sense of unease...even dread?

In 1985, not long after the birth of my youngest son, my then-husband and our 6 (his/mine and our) children moved into a huge 7 bedroom house on the outskirts of a neighboring town about 30 minutes from where I live now. My husband's brother also lived on the same street, kiddy-corner from us, which is how we ended-up finding the place.

The street and an off-shoot, both dead-ended not far from where the house was...and we were surrounded by swamp land on most of all 3 sides. I can't say that I ever liked living there, despite the size of the house and the cheap rent...it was a dark place and I am not meaning just because there was a lack of windows in most of the rooms.

During the months that we lived there, there seemed to be never-ending quarrels between neighbors...and even family; the kids seemed to be out of control; the police practically lived there in the neighborhood...there seemed to be that much trouble all of the time. It was all stupid stuff, in essence, but "bad" stupid stuff that made living there rough.

For me...I hated it there. My life was a roller coaster ride between nightmares and premonitions that came true within hours. I "knew" things...and it drove me crazy because it made me moody and afraid. My physic powers were in full drive at that point and I didn't know how to handle it. 

The funny thing is that the longer we lived there, the worse the problems in the neighborhood became. The fights got worse...especially between my husband and his brother...to the point that our lives were being threatened: someone was hired to burn down the house with all of us in it. My daughter was hit by her uncle while he was riding by on a scooter...it was deliberate and she suffered a gash just above her left ear. (And yes--he got into trouble for it with the law.) 

And it wasn't just family feuding between my husband and his brother...there was stuff going on all the time on that street: drug dealings, parties, car racing up and down the street...welcome to 'the hood' so to speak. It was bad and it was something I had never been exposed to nor did my kids need to be exposed to this craziness. 

Once we moved...things returned to normal for us as a family...the kids settled back down and started behaving again...and "I" returned to normal...the nightmares and premonitions all went away. I could breathe again...mentally and emotionally. 

I later did research on that area to see if there were any history on that part of town...but could find nothing specific. I thought maybe the area was used as an Indian burial ground or some kind of skirmish took place there between two tribes or the Continental soldiers as we lived along the area known as "The Sullivan Trail" (read 'Sullivan Expedition'). My other thought...was that this was a gateway to unholy spirits....but I don't know. 

What I do know is that whomever lives there...even now...their lives are constantly embroiled in drama: domestic abuse, drugs, child molesters, rapists, etc. The 2 streets have gotten even worse over the years so that it literally the 'slummy' part of the town. I won't even go near there...I can't. 

And it's one of the reasons that I will not live any place near that town...the memories of things past are still too close to the surface. 

Thanks for reading...and Happy New year!