It felt like my grandma’s spirit had spoken

February 22, 2025

by Stella

3 min read

Story Premise 3 min read (464 words)

"Let me tell this in order, so it’s easy to follow. When my grandparents got old, they had to leave their own house and come live with us. It wasn’t their choice, though. My uncle, who lived in a village, suddenly moved into their house with his whole family and all his stuff. He and […]"

Let me tell this in order, so it’s easy to follow.

When my grandparents got old, they had to leave their own house and come live with us. It wasn’t their choice, though. My uncle, who lived in a village, suddenly moved into their house with his whole family and all his stuff. He and his family made life so hard for my grandparents that they had no choice but to leave and stay with us.

At our home, my dad took care of them like they were his own kids—helping them bathe, changing their clothes, feeding them. My mom cooked for them, and my siblings and I cleaned their room. They were happy with us because they felt loved and cared for. That’s all parents want in their last years, right?

Time passed, and one day, my grandpa passed away at the age of 95+.

A couple of years later, my elder brother got married. My sister-in-law joined us in taking care of my grandma. But after a few months, my grandma also passed away due to old age.

My dad missed them a lot. It seemed like he secretly wished they could still be with him.

Some years later, my elder brother and his wife had twins—a boy and a girl. In India, we often name children after our elders, so we named the girl using the first three letters of my grandma’s name.

The kids grew up happily, but we never really talked about my grandparents to them. Still, somehow, my niece picked up some habits just like my grandma. She used to sit on the floor exactly the way my grandma did. My grandma had this strange habit of crushing ants with her fingers, and my niece started doing the same. She had a few more habits just like her.

But the strangest thing happened when the twins turned five.

That day, my dad was feeling low for some reason and didn’t want to eat. We all tried to make him eat, but he refused. Then, out of nowhere, my niece went up to him and said, “Hey Ashok, eat!”—just like my grandma used to say, except in her own little voice.

We were shocked. It felt like my grandma’s spirit had spoken through her. My dad was so surprised but also happy. He smiled and said, “My mom is back to take care of me,” and then he finally ate his dinner.

After that, my niece never spoke like that again. She always called my dad “Baba,” never by his name. Even now, we don’t understand how she suddenly spoke like my grandma, especially since she had never even heard her voice before. It was a moment we will never forget.

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