My heart was thumping hard against my chest; I had traveled half way around the world to reach this destination. The shiny steps that led into the foyer of the University seemed cold, uninviting, I wanted to go home, I was scared however I knew this was my last chance to help me gain some perspective back in my life. I walked up the stairs along the stark corridor, I took a deep breath read the sign on the door once more "unexplained phenomena" and entered.
"Hi you must be Katie? I'm Professor Sue Hamilton." I smiled nervously at the tall slim brunette that had greeted me. " Please sit down and join the others," Sue said.
I sat down in the only vacant chair that completed the circle of six women. Sue stood in the middle of the circle, " Good morning everyone, this is Katie please make her feel welcome we all know what it is like the first time here, now lets go straight into it, Katie would you like to start?" Sue said. I uncomfortably wriggled around in my chair, I looked at the other women, " I don't know, well I just find, I don't think I can," I said. The words dribbled out of my mouth. "Katie its okay just slow down and start at the very beginning," Sue said trying to reassure me.
I twiddled with my thumbs and stared at my feet and took a deep breath, I raised my head and looked around the room, the other women were looking intensely at me urging me to tell my story. I stood up and started to tell my experience. "Well it all started from a phone call from my husband Jim, he rang me from his office to tell me of an opportunity of a promotion for him, however we would have to move to the country."
"Jim I don't know, what about finding a house and all our friends we will never see them," I said. "Come on Katie it will be fun, leave everything to me, I will find a house and if you don't like it we will stay here," Jim said. I knew Jim's taste and I thought that it was a safe bet that we wouldn't be moving.
Jim decided to go ahead and look for a house while I stayed and started to pack up our belongings, I was surprised when he rang me and told me about this beautiful house he had seen, he forwarded the pictures of it to me by email. It was a such a lovely looking home, shingle roof and a wide veranda, it even had window shutters and a Attic I could turn into a studio area, I couldn't wait to go and have a look at the place.
When I arrived at the house, the pictures did not do it justice, the house was fantastic and when I walked inside a warm comfortable feeling came over me, I hugged Jim and told him I thought we would be both very happy here. We moved in two weeks later and I spent the next week arranging our furniture and putting away pots and pans.
It wasn't until the following week when strange things started to occur; at first I thought it was I being forgetful. I would go to bring in the washing and find all my panties folded neatly in the washing basket, or my nightie would be laid out on the bed for my nights sleep, I put it down to being under pressure, moving house and starting our life again in a new town and after the first week it had all stopped and I convinced myself things were back to normal.