House Brownie in Suburbia

Seven years ago I became a homeowner for the first time. The land that my home is built on was a cow pasture for as long as I can remember; just a massive open field with a handful of trees. On my particular plot of land, there are five oak trees. At the time of land being developed and the foundation being laid; we were asked if we would like the trees removed. They were pretty little oaks trees and we requested that the trees remain where they are. There they were and there they stayed. It is from these trees that came an experience I never anticipated. 

Shortly after we settled into the new home, I got into the habit of knitting in the backyard. It  is a peaceful and meditative time of self care; even at this time when the yard was little more than the preexisting trees and some outdoor furniture. One mild afternoon I once again found myself outside knitting alone. In between counting stitches I heard a “popping” sound coming from the direction of the trees. I looked up from my work and listened again to see if I could discover the source of the noise. 

This sudden “popping” sound did not repeat itself, instead I spotted something appear from the branches of the middle oak tree. It was a shimmering light that gently floated down towards the ground. I quickly got up from my seat to investigate what I was seeing. As the illuminated object continued its descent from the tree top, I put out a hand to see if I could touch it. However, I had a moment of hesitation and drew my hand back. Instead, I simply watched this silvery light reach the ground and dissipate on impact. That was all, no more sound, no more shimmer, no more object. It just vanished before me. I was confused but not frightened and I did not feel any malicious energy or sense of dread at this time. 

I decided to forget about what I had seen in my yard and continued on about my daily routines. It didn’t take me long to notice that there were unusual happenings occurring in and around my house. I got up early one morning to find my knitting basket that I had left messy and in the middle of the living room was organized neatly and tucked away under the table. I thought that I was strange but figured my husband put everything away. As I went about the day, I discovered laundry folded, missing socks found their partner, and the dog bowl was full of kibble. These little tasks completed was easy to ignore or chalk up to my husband doing them.

A day or so later, my husband thanked me for putting together his wrench set and putting it away. I let it be known to him that I didn’t do such a thing. As we began talking about tasks being done around the house and garden we came to the mutual conclusion that someone or something was doing chores in our house. During this talk, I shared what I experienced with the shimmering light in the backyard. After some research, we came to believe that a Brownie had taken up residence within our home. We enjoyed the work of the Brownie for several weeks. I had not had to fill the dog’s food and water bowl, dusting was kept up nicely, and I did in fact find all of our socks. 

One week my husband had some family issues occur out of state and he had to leave home for several days to take care of it. That evening the energy in my home shifted. It wasn’t necessarily negative energy, more or less an aggravated feeling. The next evening came and of course my husband was days away from coming home. As I was finishing up some house work I heard a crash coming from the spare room. I went into the room and found party supplies tossed around the room. At this point, I decided that gravity was responsible for the mess. I picked everything up and put it all away. As I got ready for bed I heard a commotion come from the room again. Again I find napkins, disposable tableware, and plates all over the floor. This time I got goosebumps and quickly put it all away again. This repeated a third time before I gave up and went to bed. The next day, I found that no tasks were completed overnight. In fact there were no chores done while my husband was away at all.

When he got back home, things went back to normal for the most part. Though it seems that the nightly tasks being done while we sleep was not as much and maybe not happening every night. One afternoon I was making bread in the kitchen. As I took a break to wait for the dough to rise, I noticed movement from the corner of my eye. It was a streak of red rushing across the kitchen floor. When I looked toward the action it all disappeared behind the refrigerator. I stayed where I was seated and simply watched the spot of the refrigerator where the red vanished off to. Moments later a figure popped its head from the side of the fridge. This figure was about 14 inches tall with a round, wrinkly face. The head was roughly the size and color of a small rustic potato. 

On top of the head, there was a red floppy hat. The body was thin and had brown, ragged tunic and pants that seemed to drape over the body. I didn’t see the feet as that part of the body was still hidden behind the kitchen appliance. I didn’t have time to really process what I was seeing as it was so unexpected. I leaped to my feet and rushed toward the refrigerator. The poor little figure fumbled itself to the back end of the fridge. In my excitement I grabbed the fridge and pulled it away from the wall. There was nothing there, but surprisingly there was no dust or dirt back there. I feel guilty over my chaotic actions against this little Brownie; I know I scared it away. From that moment on there have been no indications that my home has a Brownie or any other spirit for that matter. I hope one day that helpful spirit returns and chooses to live with us again.