
BIGFOOT (BF): What is the animal that you have in that cage?"It came to pass that a neighbor woman from a few miles away stopped to ask if I needed anything, because I had no car. She would stop to check on me periodically. I told her I needed some fresh milk and several other items, plus the local newspaper. Later she returned and brought me the items I had requested. In the newspaper it told of several remote houses and cottages in the area being broken into. I didn't think much of it until a few nights later. I couldn't sleep, so I got up and went out and sat down on the steps outside by the back door. I sat, smoking a cigarette and looking at the stars, when I noticed what looked like the glow of a cigarette behind the woodshed a short distance away. Then I saw the silhouette of a man, and then the silhouette of a second man pulling the first man back behind the woodshed. Now this was late at night, about 2:00 as I recall, and I was very frightened. I quickly got up, ran inside, locked the door, and shut off the lights. I went into the bedroom and lifted up a floorboard where my husband kept a loaded .22 pistol and a small baseball bat for protection. I grabbed these and walked through the darkness to the living room. By that time, the two men were already on the front porch. One was looking in the window and the other was trying to open the door. I was panicky but kept my cool. I went over and got down behind the couch in the corner and crouched there, pistol in one hand, baseball bat in the other. I just didn't know what to do, but I wasn't going to let anyone hurt me. I could hear the men talking and trying desperately to get in the front door.
MRS. JONES (MJ): It is my pet cat.
BF: What is a pet?
MJ: It is an animal that keeps people company. It is something to love and take care of.
BF: If you love it, why is it in that cage?
MJ: I fear it will get lost in the forest or that it will be eaten by a fox or some other wild animal - I only want to protect it.
BF: But your pet must be unhappy in that cage.
MJ: No, she is on her back purring, and to me that means she is very content. She is happy because I am here beside her.
BF: Oh, that pleases me. I did not know that. It is good to be happy.
(Mrs. Jones stands up on her porch to get a better view of her new friend. She walks to the side of the porch and stares while she begins speaking again.)
MJ: Will you please step out from behind those pine trees so I can see you better?
BF: No, I won't.
MJ: Won't you step out? I won't hurt you. I merely want a better look at you so I know with whom I am speaking.
BF: No, I will not step out.
MJ: Why not? You can see me. Here I am - short, fat, and wrinkled up - you can see me in plain sight. You can see my whole body. Won't you show yourself too?
(Mrs. Jones hears a hearty laugh inside her head, not verbally.)
BF: That's a good one. (More laughter.) You said that well about yourself. That's a good one. I must go now, but I will be back another time.
MJ: You will be back?
BF: Yes, I am here frequently but you cannot see me. I am around and always will be around, especially if you need me. I have been watching you for many years. I am always around and know what you are doing. I will talk with you another time.
BF: I was here last night. I told you I would be here whenever you needed me. I could feel fear at a distance. I came immediately. Those men were bad. As I said, I am always here, always around. I always know your thoughts. God bless you."The following year I began hearing strange noises in the forest. Something like a generator sound. It was real strange. It was like a generator winding up and then immediately winding down again, as if it had a broken part in it. I would sit out on the porch and listen to it winding through the night. Then some nights I would see strange lights above the trees, perhaps what other people would call UFOs. It lit up the entire woods. I had seen them go back and forth over the trees and then leave.
MJ: Thank you, I am grateful. I was very frightened of those men.
MJ: Hello, I have not seen you for a while."We spoke of many things that day, but he would not tell me about the eerie generator noise, nor about the strange lights in the woods.
BF: Yes, I know.
MJ: Where have you been?
BF: I cannot tell you.
MJ: What were the lights I saw over the trees the other night?
BF: It is none of your business. (He said this in a kindly tone.)
MJ: I won't tell anyone about the lights, but I am real curious. Was it a space ship? And what was the strange howling when it came over? Was that you?
BF: It is none of your business. It is not for you to know.
MJ: I will miss you, dear friend, for I will have to go soon. My husband will be picking me up in a couple of days."Later, when my husband picked me up, I told him I must say good-bye to my friend in the forest. I told him I was going to walk down a small trail not far from the lake. My husband understood but he did not want to discuss it. These things frightened him. He couldn't discuss it. He sat quietly in the car reading a newspaper while I walked into the woods to look for Bigfoot. I walked some distance and then sat down under a tree for a short spell. In my mind I began telling him I was leaving now and wanted to say good-bye, hoping that we would talk again next year. He answered me immediately, though I could not see him. He said he had enjoyed talking with me and would indeed see me the following year. I was so happy. There was something beautiful about his words that gave me a warm feeling about this man. There was a true sense of love. I really did not want to go back to Milwaukee, to the city, to all the people.
BF: What is a husband?
MJ: He is the man who brought me here. He's the one I'm married to who cares for me.
BF: Oh, you mean your mate. Yes, that man. I know of him.
MJ: I will be back again, perhaps in the spring.
BF: What is spring? I do not know that word.
MJ: Spring is the season right after winter.
BF: I do not understand your words.
MJ: It is the season right after the snow melts.
BF: What is the word snow?
MJ: It is when the ground becomes white all over and is cold.
BF: Yes, I understand. But what is spring?
MJ: Spring is when the water has the ability to flow again. When the water is free to move and the weather gets warm.
BF: Oh, now I understand spring. Now I understand (gives a hearty laugh). That is a good one. I like how you explain that. Yes, that is a good one.