Story time
I have debated posting this for YEARS because even now, at 29, I still don’t know what to make of it. One of the most vivid, unexplainable experiences of my life.
When I was around 14, I used to hang out with this guy who came from a very religious family. He was studying to become an exorcism priest and was deeply involved in spirituality and religion. People always said there was something different about him -that he could see things, had visions, experienced spiritual encounters, things like that. At the time, I never really thought much into it.
He would take me to all kinds of spiritual places around our area. One place that always stuck with me was this house full of religious statues and pictures of Mary and Jesus that people claimed would cry. I know how crazy that sounds, but I remember it so clearly. They literally kept napkins under some of the pictures/statues because liquid would run from them. The house always smelled strongly like roses — not faintly, but overwhelmingly, in a way I still remember vividly to this day.
One night around 2–3 in the morning, he asked his friend Tess and me, “Do you want to go to church? There’s a prayer building that stays open 24/7. It’s really cool.”
So of course, we went.
We get there, and he’s showing us around. Everything feels normal at first. Then suddenly, he drops to his knees.
Tess immediately looks at me and quietly says, “ it’s happening. It’s happening. Just sit back.”
At this point, I have no idea what she means.
Then the entire room fills with the smell of roses — instantly. Strong. Like someone dumped hundreds of fresh roses into the building.
He starts speaking in a language I had never heard before in my life. I mean, genuinely never heard. He looked emotional — almost happy, but overwhelmed, like he was about to cry.
Then he grabs my left hand, lifts it up in the air almost like an offering, looks directly at me, and says:
“She says you’re going to do great.”
Then he goes back to his knees, continuing to speak.
And then out of nowhere
BOOM.
The entire building shook and rattled. Not metaphorically. Physically shook. Loud enough that I thought something exploded or hit the building.
He jumps up and darts outside, so of course we follow him.
I swear on everything, when I looked up into the sky there was this huge, bright cross-shaped light beaming in the sky.
Then another loud boom happened.
He immediately runs back inside. We follow him again.
This is where things got even stranger.
He lays flat on the floor in the position of a crucifix — arms out, body straight — and starts crying. But the way his body was moving… it looked like someone was physically pinning him down. Almost like invisible pressure. Like he was being nailed to the floor.
He stayed like that for several minutes before eventually passing out.
Tess calmly says, “It’s done. Let’s check on him.”
We help him up and get him into the car because at this point he’s exhausted, crying, overwhelmed, and keeps saying:
“We have to leave. We have to leave. I’ll explain in the car.”
Once we’re in the car, I notice something I still cannot explain:
The palms of his hands were bleeding.
The tops of his feet were bleeding.
And he had indentions around his forehead, almost like something had pressed into his skin like a crown of thorns.
He told us he had been speaking to Mary and that she had a message for me.
We never talked about that night again.
Ever.
To this day, I still don’t know what to think about it or what it was supposed to mean. Maybe there’s an explanation. Maybe there isn’t.
But I know what I saw.
Has anyone ever experienced anything remotely similar?