Deceased sister appears and grows up by a lake after an all-night ceremony
A caller from Montreal, Canada, tells Art Bell that two years earlier, after an all-night Native American church ceremony, they walked down to a lake to meditate. They reportedly saw a young girl come out of the mist, and they recognized her as their sister, who had died in 1961. They say she appeared to grow into a young woman as she came toward them. Then she spoke to the caller from the far side of the lake. Frightened, they report, they ran back to the teepee, where an elder told them she had come to thank them for letting her go. The call ends with Art thanking the caller and moving on.
This clip comes from the source recording. AI chose where it starts and ends, so it may start or end a little early or late. The word-for-word transcript is not published. You can hear the source recording on the Internet Archive (file “Ghost to Ghost 1997.mp3”, starting at 2:18:06). Is this you, or someone you know? Ask for a correction or removal.
The story as told
The caller, who gives their location only as Montreal, Canada, says they listen to the show while driving and called in on a night they got home early. They frame the story as [quote withheld] but as something that [quote withheld] They report having attended a Native American church ceremony, “a grandfather ceremony,” that begins at dusk and runs until dawn the next morning. When it was over, they say, they walked down by the lake intending to meditate. There, they report, something like a whirlwind came around them, [quote withheld] They say they saw a young girl emerging from the mist and recognized her as their sister. As she came closer she seemed to grow up and become [quote withheld] They say she kept walking past them and smiled. Then, on the other side of the lake, she turned and said, [quote withheld] They report being badly frightened, running back to the teepee, and telling the elder they did not want to die. According to the caller, the elder said the caller was not going to die. The elder explained that the caller’s sister had come back to thank them for letting her go so she could continue her journey on the other side, and that “see you soon” means nothing in time to her. The caller adds that their sister died in 1961 and that this happened two years before the broadcast. That was 34 years in which they had not let her go, which they connect to the residential school they both went through and to the custom that the eldest cares for the youngest. They say they did not let her go until that ceremony, and that when they did, she began to grow up and continue her journey.
Reported events, in order
- 0:20
The caller says they attended a Native American church “grandfather ceremony” running from dusk until dawn.
- 0:32
After the ceremony, they walked down by the lake to meditate.
- 0:36
They report something like a whirlwind coming around them, which they describe as not strong.
- 0:45
They report seeing a young girl come out of the mist and recognizing her as their sister.
- 0:52
They say she appeared to grow up as she approached, becoming a beautiful young lady, and walked past them smiling.
- 1:04
On the other side of the lake, she reportedly turned and said, [quote withheld]
- 1:12
Frightened, they say they ran back to the teepee and told the elder they did not want to die.
- 1:18
The elder reportedly told the caller they would not die and that the caller’s sister had come back to thank them for letting her go.
- 1:37
The caller states their sister died in 1961 and that the event happened two years before the broadcast, 34 years later.
- 2:23
They say they did not let her go until that ceremony, after which she began to grow up and continue her journey.
Claims
Each claim is labeled as something the person telling the story noticed (observation), what they made of it (interpretation), something others told them (hearsay), or something the host said (host statement).
- observation· 0:36
A whirlwind-like movement came around the caller by the lake, which they describe as not strong.
- observation· 0:45
The caller saw a young girl come out of the mist and recognized her as their sister.
- observation· 0:57
The figure appeared to age, from a young girl into a young woman, as she came toward them.
- observation· 1:04
The figure spoke to the caller from the far side of the lake.
- interpretation· 0:13
The caller takes the experience as evidence of life after death.
- hearsay· 1:21
An elder told the caller their sister had returned to thank them for letting her go, and that “see you soon” means no time to her.
- hearsay· 1:18
An elder told the caller they were not going to die.
- interpretation· 2:23
The caller did not let their sister go until that ceremony, and once they did, she continued her journey.
Scores, with reasons
An AI model gave these scores using a fixed set of scoring rules (scoring-v1). They are editorial judgments and rough guides, not the odds that anything paranormal happened. How scoring works.
A coherent firsthand story with a described sequence and some concrete context (the type and length of the ceremony, a year for the sister’s death, an interval of 34 years). But it has no names, no named place, no witness to the event itself, and no engagement with ordinary possibilities that fit the setting.
Evidence for and against
- Firsthand telling: [quote withheld]
- Concrete context for the setting and timing: [quote withheld] and [quote withheld]
- An ordered story with a stated ending (the elder’s explanation and the caller’s letting her go).
- No names, and no named lake, town, or ceremony site. The only location given is a city.
- No second witness to the ghost. The elder’s remarks are reported secondhand.
- Ordinary features (a whirlwind “not strong,” mist, an all-night ceremony, meditation) are not addressed as possible explanations.
- The labels showing who is speaking alternate between the caller and the host within the caller’s own sentences.
- A passage is partly lost in the transcript ([quote withheld]), where the transcript could not make out the words.
- 0:20
- 0:45
- 1:37
What the model inferred (not said on air): The component points are my own application of the scoring guide. Closeness to the source is scored as firsthand but fairly brief in detail. Specificity is limited by the absence of names and dates. Other explanations are scored low because the caller does not discuss the mist, the wind, and the setting after an all-night vigil.
Nothing beyond the caller’s own word is present. No photograph, recording, document, or named person is offered, and no second witness to the event speaks on air.
Evidence for and against
- The report is firsthand and includes a small number of anchors that could be checked (a city, a year, a type of ceremony): [quote withheld] and [quote withheld]
- No names, no location of the lake, no documentation of any kind.
- The only other person mentioned (the elder) did not witness the event. The elder’s words are relayed, not confirmed.
- It is unclear whether the caller’s name or any further identifying detail was given earlier in this part of the broadcast.
- 0:03
- 1:21
What the model inferred (not said on air): Scored in the lowest range (assertion only) because the transcript contains no object or backing on air. The city and year are noted, but without a name they are not enough to count as support that can be checked independently.
The meeting is eerie in its setting (mist, a shape that changes apparent age, a spoken farewell), and the caller reports being badly frightened. But the meeting is presented as gentle and ends with reassurance and a sense of resolution.
Evidence for and against
- A figure emerging from mist and appearing to age during the meeting: [quote withheld]
- A message delivered as the figure leaves: [quote withheld]
- The caller’s own fright: [quote withheld]
- No threat, harm, or intrusion into a home. The story is framed as [quote withheld]
- The elder’s explanation settles the fear ([quote withheld]), and the story ends warmly.
- The precise look of the figure (solid or see-through) is not stated.
- 0:13
- 1:09
What the model inferred (not said on air): My judgment of the emotional feel of the story for a listener, based only on the reported details. No claim is made about the caller’s state of mind.
A dead relative appearing with a farewell message is a familiar frame. But the reported change of apparent age during the meeting, and the framing within an all-night Native American church ceremony and grief over the residential school, are distinctive details. The score is provisional, since the comparison with the rest of the archive is not meaningfully estimated here.
Evidence for and against
- The figure is said to grow up as she approaches: “she started” ... [quote withheld]
- The reason given for the visit, thanks for [quote withheld] is tied to a specific story of grief.
- The setting is an all-night “grandfather ceremony” rather than the usual house or bedroom.
- The core elements (a dead relative seen, a comforting message, mist, a lake) recur widely in ghost stories.
- The model score is given without a meaningful estimate of novelty against the archive, so it should be treated as provisional.
- 0:57
- 1:21
What the model inferred (not said on air): How rare the themes are, and how similar the story is to others in the archive, were not computed for this run. The score reflects content only.
Scoring confidence 0.60 · analysis confidence 0.70 · checked against outside sources: no · evidence available: The caller’s firsthand story (live call).; No object, document, or recording offered or examined.; No second witness on air.. The originality score blends the model's score (52) with how rare the story's details are across the archive. This method is still provisional.
Ordinary explanations to consider
These are possibilities only. None is a finding about what happened.
- Morning mist and low light over the lake could have produced an indistinct shape that was taken for a person. · The caller says the girl came [quote withheld] and that she was seen at the lake after an overnight ceremony ending at dawn.
- The “whirlwind” the caller describes may have been an ordinary gust of wind at the lakeside. · The caller qualifies it as [quote withheld]
- Tiredness or an altered state of attention after an all-night ceremony, and while meditating, could contribute to misperception. · The caller says the ceremony [quote withheld] and that after it was over they went down to the lake “to meditate.”
What stands out
The reported figure is said to change apparent age during the meeting. She starts as a young girl and is “growing up” as she approaches. The story is framed throughout by a Native American church ceremony, by the caller’s stated grief over a sister who died in 1961, and by their shared residential-school experience. Within the story, an elder, not the caller alone, explains the “see you soon” message.
Related stories
Matched by shared recurring details, categories, and wording.