Chapter 1

The Man Beside Uncle RayEpisode

November 1, 2022

Every November 1, many Filipinos, especially Catholic families, visit cemeteries to remember their departed loved ones.

For most Filipino families, this day is more than just a visit to the cemetery. It is also a time for family reunions. Some families bring tents, candles, food, and drinks. Relatives and friends gather together, share stories, eat, and spend time with one another while remembering those who have passed away.

It is a tradition that brings families together, even in a place where their loved ones are laid to rest.

But November 1, 2022, was different for me.

It was a day I would never forget.

That afternoon, at around four o’clock, my family prepared to leave for the cemetery. However, I decided to stay home because I wasn’t really fond of crowded places. I preferred being alone, so I stayed in my room, reading and watching something on my phone.

At first, everything was normal.

Until I started hearing strange noises downstairs.

I heard footsteps, followed by sounds coming from the kitchen. It sounded as if someone was cooking, washing dishes, and moving kitchen utensils around. I even heard what sounded like a chair being dragged across the floor.

I thought someone might be downstairs, so I went down to check.

But when I reached the kitchen, there was nobody there.

I checked the other parts of the house, too, but I couldn’t find anyone.

I immediately sent a message to our family group chat and asked where everyone was. They confirmed that they were all already at the cemetery.

My mom even told me to check whether the doors were locked. I checked them, and they were.

I couldn’t understand what I had just heard.

I went back upstairs to my room, hoping I could forget about it and continue what I was doing.

But it didn’t stop there.

A little later, I heard another strange sound.

This time, it came from the bathroom.

It sounded like someone was turning the shower or faucet on and off.

I went to check again.

And once again, there was nobody there.

The bathroom was completely empty.

By around seven in the evening, I decided that I should finally go to the cemetery and join my family.

I went to take a shower and get ready. But while I was showering, I suddenly noticed a strange smell.

It smelled like flowers, with a faint scent similar to a burning candle.

It wasn’t the smell of my soap or shampoo. It was something completely different.

I couldn’t explain where it was coming from.

By that point, I was already frightened, so I hurriedly finished showering and got dressed.

When I stepped outside the house, I started checking my purse to make sure I had my keys and phone with me.

Then, I noticed something.

I saw what looked like a shadow inside our house.

I couldn’t clearly make out what it was, but I felt that someone—or something—was inside.

I was too scared to go back and check.

I immediately sent another message to our family group chat, telling them everything that had happened to me that day.

Then I tried to start my car.

But it wouldn’t start.

I remember thinking that maybe I should go back inside and check the house. But I was already too frightened. I couldn’t even bring myself to look back.

So instead, I decided to take a cab to the cemetery.

I arrived at around eight o’clock in the evening.

My family and cousins were already there, having supper and enjoying themselves. The children were playing with what we called candle balls—little balls made from candle wax.

Everything seemed normal.

Everyone was laughing, eating, and spending time together.

But then I noticed someone I didn’t recognize.

There was an older man sitting with our family, near my uncle, Uncle Ray.

I had never seen him before.

What made me uncomfortable was that he kept staring at me. I noticed him looking in my direction several times, and I couldn’t understand why.

I leaned toward my mom and asked her who the man was. I also asked her if she could talk to him because I didn’t know him.

My mom looked in the direction I was pointing.

But she seemed confused.

She told me there was nobody there.

According to her, the only people in that area were Uncle Ray and the children.

She even asked me if I was drunk.

I told her I wasn’t. I insisted that there was a man sitting beside Uncle Ray, and I was certain I had seen him.

I couldn’t understand why my mom couldn’t see him.

So I decided to walk straight toward the man.

But the moment I approached him, he suddenly disappeared.

There was no one there.

Nothing.

I was completely shocked.

I stood there, unable to understand what had just happened. I looked around, but there was no sign of the man.

And my mom was right.

There was nobody beside Uncle Ray. It was only Uncle Ray and the children in that part of the cemetery.

I couldn’t explain what I had experienced, and I was still trying to process everything that had happened to me throughout the day.

When my family and I finally went home, I decided to tell them everything in detail.

I told them about the strange noises inside the house, the bathroom, the unusual smell of flowers and candles, the shadow I saw, and finally, the man at the cemetery.

My mom asked me about the shadow I had seen outside the house.

I told her that I thought it was the shadow of a man.

Then she asked me if I could describe the person I had seen.

I suddenly remembered something.

Earlier, when I went downstairs to check the kitchen, I had also seen what looked like a man’s shadow inside our kitchen.

Then my mom asked me to describe the man I had seen at the cemetery beside Uncle Ray.

I told her that he was quite tall, with short hair. He had a fair complexion, a pointed nose, and very light-colored eyebrows.

I also remembered noticing a birthmark on the left side of his cheek.

He wasn’t thin. He had an average body build.

He was wearing a dark blue polo shirt, brown pants, and rubber slippers.

I described every detail I could remember.

I had never met that man before. I didn’t know who he was, and I couldn’t understand why he had been staring at me.

My mom suddenly looked shocked.

Without saying much, she went straight to her room and started searching through some old belongings inside her cabinet.

A few moments later, she came back to the living room holding an old photograph of a man.

She handed it to me.

The moment I saw the picture, I immediately recognized him.

“Yes! That’s him! That’s exactly the man I saw earlier beside Uncle Ray!” I exclaimed.

My mom was even more shocked.

I looked at her and asked, “Why? What’s wrong? Who is he?”

Then she told me something I had never known before.

“That’s Jaime. He’s your grandfather from your father’s side—the eldest brother of your grandfather. You were still very little when he passed away.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

His name was Jaime.

And my name is Jamie.

I was actually named after him.

My mom then explained why.

When she was pregnant with me, something happened that changed our family’s lives. There was an accident, and my mom was supposed to be the one involved.

But my grandfather Jaime went there to rescue her.

Sadly, he didn’t survive.

He died while saving my mom.

My mom had carried that guilt for years. She felt that perhaps he wouldn’t have died if it weren’t for her.

Because of that, she never really told us the story. It was something she had kept to herself for so long.

I sat there, trying to process everything.

The man I had seen at the cemetery—the same man who had disappeared right in front of me—was someone from my own family.

Someone whose face I had never known, but whose name I had been carrying all my life.

I couldn’t help but wonder…

Was that his way of letting me know who he was?

Was that why I saw him that day?

Maybe, after all those years, Lolo Jaime simply wanted me to recognize him.