SIGNS ACROSS THE divide
Sam’s the man
Mark Mcnaughton, 39, from Liverpool, Merseyside
Iused to share a flat with my brother Adrian, now 44, and we had strict house rules. We didn’t touch each other’s stuff and we always cleaned up after ourselves.
One morning, I got up for work and left a tidy house. My brother had already gone.
That night I was unimpressed to find a tube of Pringles had been scattered over my bedroom floor! There was even an empty container.
Cross words
‘I’m not having this,’ I muttered, storming off to confront my brother.
I thought he’d thrown the crisps about to annoy me.
‘Why have you been in my room?’ I asked Adrian angrily.
‘What are you talking about?’ he replied, confused. ‘I’ve been at work all day. By the way, why did you move my slippers? When I came home one slipper was on the couch in the living room.’
‘I didn’t touch them!’ I retorted. It was odd, though. Scattered crisps, a slipper on the sofa - what was going on? Hours later, I thought
about our old spaniel Sam who had passed away only a year earlier at 14 years old.
Sam had been with the family since he was a pup and lived for walks and sitting by the radiator.
He was also the fussiest dog and wouldn’t eat his food unless you fed him off a fork.
Canine spook
Like all dogs, he loved his treats - including crisps. I know it’s a big stretch to suggest that Sam’s spirit sniffed out a tube of Pringles from my brother’s room and flung the crisps about in my room but that’s exactly the kind of thing Sam did when he was alive.
What’s more, when Sam was left alone he always went into someone’s room, found a shoe or slipper, carried it to the living room and slept with it on the couch.
I’m sure he stole the slippers for comfort – and that day our family dog came back as a ghost.
The event happened eight years ago. Sam never visited us again.
My brother and I no longer share a place and I now run my own shop in Liverpool.
But Sam was one of the few things that my brother and I could agree on. We both loved that dog, bless him.
Mark’s shop The Alt Box sells gothic and steampunk jewellery and fashion. Visit thealtbox.co.uk
Crisps were scattered on the floor
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