Looking at the calendar today, I became very frightened. I was not frightened just because Halloween is almost here. I was frightened more because this month and this season are passing so quickly. It always seemed in the past that October went by slowly, and then, once Halloween was over, the rest of the year zoomed by and a new year was upon us. This year, the race to end started too early and I just was not ready for it. I planned on more ghost hunts, stories of haunting, and other ideas to set the mood for the season. Now, instead of my great plans, I am forced by the lack of time to pull yet another story out of my bag of memories. Fortunately for you, this time I pulled out the real and factual story of "The Belleview Witch".

This is a true story from my past. To the best of my memory, every event happened just as I record it here today. It all began when my family moved north from Denver to the suburbs back in 1968. Despite being rather young, I still remember that now paved roads were then made of dirt, and where shopping centers exist today, there were only crappie ponds and huge, old, cottonwood trees yesterday. There were also bugs, fish, frogs, and snakes. For a boy who lived much of his life in the city, it seemed we had moved to heaven. There was so much to see and explore, including a huge, old castle on a hill. At least that's what it looked like to me.

I knew this building was gothic even before I knew what gothic was. It was right out of a creature feature. It had these huge, cut blocks for walls, tall spires that poked at the clouds, and it was the lone building virtually in the center of nowhere. To a kid raised on Dracula, the Werewolf, and the Mummy, it was certainly a castle. It was also very scary just by its very nature. There seemed to be an aura about the place, and I purposely stayed away, even during the day. To top it all off, the building also had its own cemetery. When you are young, that's as creepy as it gets.

Yet, from day one, I still had this morbid curiosity about the place, though I never went near. When we drove by in the car, I would look out the window half in awe and half in the anticipation that something evil was lurking about ready to jump on the roof. It was like living in my own horror movie, and I was certain this building had more than just the regular collection of spooks. I was certain there was some even more evil presence, but I did not know what it was. I would soon discover that I was right and that this building was the haunt of a witch called The Belleview Witch. The discovery happened one summer night while sleeping outside with friends.

I was fortunate to live on a block where many other kids lived. During the summer when we were out of school, there were enough of us to get together and play our generation's version of video games. We called them football, basketball and baseball played outdoors with real dirt, real leather and real fun. The games always ended when the sun went down and there wasn't enough light to see a ball. Many times, after the games were over, we would throw our sleeping bags in the backyard and have our own, impromptu, backyard camping trips. We called it "sleeping out". Frequently, while "sleeping out", we would get into innocent mischief and, it was on one of those mischievous nights we all met the Belleview Witch face to face.

It was too long ago to remember everyone involved, but it seems like there were at least three in the group. Out in the backyard and under the stars, our imaginations started to wander and the stories started floating around. A boy, who had lived in the neighborhood all his life and remembered when our houses were just part of an apple orchard, began to tell us of the castle on the hill and the Witch who wandered the property. Hey, he lived there all his life, and he was a whole year older than the rest of us. He must know the truth, right?

He didn't give us any background information. We were talking about the castle and he just came out and said, "Did you know there's a witch up there?" Even though in our minds our thoughts were, "I'll bet it's true", the words from our mouths were, "No, way". Nonetheless, he claimed it was true, and he had seen her. He invited us all to go look for ourselves at night, that night. We couldn't refuse. Long before the movie "Stand By Me", we were soon off on our own midnight walk to prove the story either true or false. It's amazing what kids can get away with at night when everyone's sleeping. We walked the entire way, (about a mile), and no one ever questioned what young boys our age were doing walking the streets in the middle of the night. Times sure have changed.

All the way up there, we talked about the witch, what we would do when we saw her, and what she had done to other people. "I heard she keeps looking for her ex-lover and attacks every man she sees". "I heard that her baby died soon after birth and she thinks every child she sees is her lost baby". "I heard she has about 700 cats and looks for road kill to feed them". We all laughed and enjoyed stretching the boundaries our parents set for us as well as the boundaries of our imaginations. I'm pretty sure most of the stories were made up right on the spot just to be adding something to the conversation. It didn't matter. The most important thing was we were on an adventure, having fun, and bonding. It was cool.

Before we knew it, we were on the hill and near the castle. "Shhh, Shhh. Keep quiet. She'll hear you". Our voices quieted to a whisper, but our excitement never let up. We were still smiling and giggling as we turned the corner by the graveyard. Then, just that quickly, I heard, "Get down, get down. There she is!" I remember laughing again and thinking again, "No way", but then I saw something. I quickly dropped to the ground unable to speak.

There we were all on the ground in front of a graveyard in the middle of the night with our eyes all transfixed on an object that looked like an old woman. We knew it must be the Belleview Witch. We could barely believe our eyes. Everything went silent. We watched to see which way the witch would go. For the longest time, she didn't move at all. She just stood there as if smelling the wind. Finally, someone broke the silence. "What's she doing?" "Shhhhh, be quiet". "She must have heard us and she's trying to figure out where we are". We sat there huddled on the ground in front of graveyard for ten or 15 minutes. No one moved, not even the witch, but our hearts all beat faster and the excitement was very real. This was "too cool" to believe. We had actually found and seen the Belleview Witch. I couldn't wait to get home and tell my other friends. We'd all be heroes! Then the silence was broken.

There were four or five cats perched on the gate to the cemetery watching us just as we watched the witch. I remember their eyes glowing in the dark. Their purrs sounded eerie in the silence of the night. We were sure they were the witch's cats and maybe they were hoping the witch would catch us for their dinner. Then, the kid who started the story shouted, "SHE KNOWS WE'RE HERE" as he stood up and started jumping around like a wild man while screaming, "HEY, WITCHY! OVER HERE! OVER HERE!" He pointed at us and started running the other way. By now, I was overcome with fear, but I was also laughing so hard I could barely move. I just started running away as fast as I could in that "dream-like" sort of way where you try to move your feet as fast as you can, but you feel like you are going nowhere. We headed toward home never stopping to look back.

We all made it home safely, and laughed the rest of the night about our adventure before finally falling asleep. The next day, we all went back up the hill looking for "evidence". We went to the spot where we saw the witch only to discover nothing. There were no footprints, no cats, and no road kill. There was, however, a very suspicious tree stump shaped like an old woman with a scarf and standing about five feet tall. I suppose in the moonlight on the right day of the month, it could look like an old woman, but I did not remember seeing a tree stump there the night before. So, did we see a witch or a tree stump? I guess only the Belleview Witch and her 700 cats will ever know for sure.

We didn't solve the mystery of the Witch, but we did learn something about imagination and therein lays the beauty of the Halloween season and the beauty of the Belleview Witch. Halloween is all about imagination and it reminds us what a boring existence it becomes when we lose touch with our imaginations. No one really knows for sure about things like the Belleview Witch, and that's why they call it the "unknown", but it's that unknown aspect that triggers the imagination to help us fill in the gaps. Remember, a big part of history was sparked by a little bit of imagination. .

Hollywood learned a long time ago about the value of a good ghost story and a good imagination. They've made millions off those facts. Many old cities, (even Denver), also know how much more attractive old buildings are if there is a story, especially a ghost story, attached to them. Children, with their natural curiosity and innocent naiveté, learn early on how much fun imagination is. It is too bad so many of us outgrow that and come to take life too seriously. Halloween is the start of the holiday season that ends with the beginning of a new year. It is also a good time to remind ourselves to take some time to remember the kids we once were, enjoy life a little bit more, and to keep our imaginations alive. Are there really witches, ghosts, and goblins? I don't know, and I really don't care, but I'll always keep looking for them. Halloween, on the other hand, is real, and, at least for one night, the Belleview Witch was real to my friends and me, thanks to our imaginations. This year, discover your own Belleview Witch, and have a Happy Halloween!

(Author's note: No witches or cats were harmed in the making of this story. Likewise, no graveyards were disturbed, headstones overturned, or property trespassed upon. Please, use your imagination and have fun, but always respect the rights and property of others)