For a few weeks Sarah and the kids experienced some unexplained happenings in the house.  Almost every day there were unusual smells - some foul, like stale cigarette ash and some pleasant, like flowery perfume.  At first Sarah suspected that David and Anna were engaging in typical childhood pranks, but they swore that they weren’t responsible.  Sometimes a ‘smell’ would appear out of the blue and would disappear again just as swiftly; doors and windows would be shut and everyone would be together in the same room.  On a few occasions they’d all be watching TV and would suddenly be aware of a strong smoky smell enveloping the room.  It was a smell which could be tasted and which settled at the back of their throats causing them to cough and almost choke.  All the family would run about the house in search of a fire but there was none.  It was a mystery.

            Usually the smells came together.  A pungent, polluted whiff would precede an aroma of beautiful floral bouquets or vice versa and with the smells came a change in temperature.  The repulsive pong was always accompanied by an uncomfortable warm surge of air and the delightful aroma came with a soothing cool breeze.  Curiously, Sarah soon realised that the welcoming sweet scent was the same as the perfumed fragrance that her late mother used to wear.  Sarah became convinced that her mum was contacting her from beyond the grave - it was as if she was telling her daughter not to worry and that everything would be alright.  She recalled her mum once telling her that if she smells her perfume when she’s dead, it will mean she has paid a fleeting visit and that it is nothing to be frightened of.  Sarah remembered that her mum had told her about having the same experience with her own mother and how comforting and pleasant it had been.

            At the same time Sarah became aware that her children were talking to God.  This time Sarah played close attention to what they had to say.  She learned that the nice smells were good ones, signifying that God and his ‘angels’ [one of whom was her mother] were visiting and that the opposite ones - the death-like choking stenches, were evil and symbolised the devil.  David and Anna explained that God wanted Sarah to finish the book about her experiences of unscrupulous Authorities and expose corruption.  They explained that they could see God, the angels and the devils and that when God spoke to them his voice just popped into their heads.

            Sarah was puzzled.  Not only were there weird smells but rolled-up burnt tapers also appeared, seemingly from nowhere, from time to time.  Plus death threats once emerged on her bathroom mirror.  There was no logical explanation.  So she blamed David and Anna even though she knew they couldn’t’ve been responsible for much of the phenomena.  They were of course indignant and insisted that Satan was so devious and crafty that his methods were working.  He could make it look as if David and Anna were to blame.

            Both David and Anna came out with words uncharacteristic of kids their age, such as “divine” and “revolution”.  Sarah found it odd.  David and Anna would ask their mother for the definitions, saying such words had just appeared in their heads.  But what really alarmed her was when David asked her what “armageddon” meant as the word had just entered his head and he’d heard God’s voice saying that they have to help change the world to righteous rule because if they didn’t, within the next few years, the anti-Christ would come to power.

            It was all so unreal.  Sarah knew that all kids have flights of fancy and that they enjoy seeing ghosts and spooking each other out; but there was more to all of this than a child’s perception.  She had seen for herself unexplained occurrences which could not be disregarded.  She pondered the bible and its predictions and realised that the world is heading straight for disaster.  Never before in its history has there been the monopolisation so evident today, the unrest, poverty, warmongers, pollution and threat to the planet, family break up etc.  And all of it as a result of the actions of greedy, power-hungry, corrupt men.  Sarah herself could now personally identify with council and government agency wrongdoing.  As she thought more deeply, her eye, quite by chance, focussed on a passage in the local rag, written by Paco Rabanne - world famous prophetic writer.  He said that he’d met God. He predicts a third world war where the world is in flames.  He says negative power is dominating for the next few years and that today’s obsession with sex is a conspiracy to bring the anti-Christ to power.  He reckons women will fight male domination and that in the forthcoming era [the age of justice] women will seize power.  He also says to beware of the pope because he is the reincarnation of Kasfa, the high priest who put Jesus on the cross.  Sarah was awestruck.  Suddenly it was all beginning to make sense.

            She began to keep a record of all the paranormal activity.  It soon became clear that the mysterious happenings were increasing in frequency and intensity.  Sarah was reluctant to tell anyone for fear of being labelled ‘loopy’ or ‘attention-seeking’.  Who would believe her anyway?  Eventually though it began to get more unbearable and frightening.  She and the kids would find recently lit smouldering tapers on the stairs, on the beds, in all the rooms, anywhere.  And the stenches were ghastly - they came thick and fast, like a blast of decaying matter or rotten burning corpses.

            Almost driven mad, Sarah contacted her local respected Cannon who put her in touch with a Reverend of twenty years experience of dealing with poltergeists and people’s spiritual experiences.  Arrangements were made for him to visit and ‘exorcise’ the house.  But in the meantime something happened which was to have the most profound impact on Sarah and her children thus far.