09/03/2026
Since the dust has finally settled and the sound of drills and sanding blocks no longer fills every spare moment of our days, something else has begun to stir again...my words.
For the past two and a half years, life outside of work was consumed by rebuilding walls, insulating cold bones of the house, painting, restoring, resurrecting. It was exhausting. Rewarding, yes, but relentless. And somewhere in the midst of it all, my creative voice quietly stepped aside.
Now, as we turn the page into this new chapter at Sharon Rectory, it feels only right to return to what I have always done best, telling the stories that live within these walls. And since the New Year… there have been stories.
Some moments I had almost forgotten, until I sat down and allowed the memories to rise back to the surface. But one occurrence in particular refuses to be ignored.
If you don’t follow me over on TikTok, you may not have heard about what happened at the end of January. An experience both unsettling and deeply strange.
There was a heaviness in the house again. A thickness in the air. It seemed to gather most intensely around the back staircase in the main building. An area many of you who have attended our Halloween tours will remember well.
That staircase has never felt quite right.
The temperature shifts without reason. The air turns sharp and cold. Even in daylight, there is the undeniable sensation of being watched as you climb the stairwell. My sister would have often spoken of something chasing her up those very stairs when she was younger. I would never linger there longer than necessary when alone.
You may recall me mentioning in my book, I would stare at that dreaded window above my childhood bedroom door... the door that would lead to the back staircase. It has always been an unnerving area in the house.
Then, one afternoon toward the end of January, Mum was descending those stairs, something she does countless times a day when she was stopped abruptly. The entire window at the bottom of the staircase was covered in blue bottle flies. Not a handful.
A swarm! They clung to the glass as though something lifeless lay hidden nearby. Yet after careful inspection, there was no source. No scent. No visible cause. And stranger still, they did not scatter when approached. Instead, Mum stood and watched as they began to drop. One by one. Falling to the sill as though something unseen had severed their life force.
She messaged me immediately. When I went to see it for myself, the air felt wrong. Dense, almost charged, but still there was no explanation. She cleaned the entire area thoroughly, even repainting around the window to refresh the space.
My first thought, based on years of research into similar cases, was one that many in paranormal circles will recognise...An infestation of black or blue bottle flies has long been associated with stagnant or negative energy in a location. It is documented in numerous accounts of hauntings and spiritual disturbances. We decided to watch and wait.
The following day, Mum descended the staircase again. They were back. More than before. And this time, she watched them appear seemingly from nowhere, gathering against the edge of the glass in front of her eyes. Again, no source. No cracks. No entry point. No logical explanation.
She cleaned the area once more, and this time followed with a sage cleansing which is something she practices regularly, alongside another simple but widely recognised ritual 'leaving a glass of water, vinegar, and salt within the space to absorb stagnant or negative energy.'
Since that day… The flies have not returned. We are not naive enough to believe that one cleansing removes all negativity from a house like Sharon Rectory. Energy comes and goes here, as it always has. But whatever lingered at the back staircase has, for now, retreated.
Whether it chooses to rise again is something only time will tell.
As I settle back into writing and documenting our life here, I will be sharing more of these moments with you. The subtle, the unsettling, and the unexplainable. Because when you live in a house with this much history… The quiet never stays quiet for long. 👻
