I live on the same grounds as my mother, who lives alone in a house that faces ours now that my father has passed away.

Last summer, I was washing dishes in the kitchen after breakfast, when some movement outside

caught my eye.

One of the leaves on the Fatsia plant outside the window was moving.

It looked just like someone shaking it.

There was no wind, so I opened the window to check what was going on.

Then, I saw the light on in my mother's toilet.

She never turned the lights on during the day to save money, so this was weird.

I grabbed my duplicate key and rushed over.

There, I saw my mother's feet poking out from behind the half-open toilet door. She had suffered a stroke.

She got up during the night to use the toilet, then suddenly passed out.

Luckily, the ambulance soon arrived and she was okay.

Looking back on it now, I think it was my father's spirit who shook that leaf. He was trying

to let me know that my mother needed urgent help. Those who can see ghosts probably would

have seen him standing there. I wish I could have. When I think about how desperately and wildly he must have been shaking

the plant, I can't help but smile a little.

Hey guys, I'm your host Tara A Devlin, and welcome to this week's episode of Kowabana,

true Japanese scary stories from around the internet.

In case you missed it, Toshiden exploring Japanese Urban Legends Volume 4 is now available.

Once again, there are a host of new legends to explore, both horrifying, bizarre, and otherwise.

And of course, a new season of the podcast that has just wrapped up. So, if

you haven't checked it out yet, it's available right now. You can also find the audiobook

...