Have you ever experienced something that is so strange that you just didn’t even know how to react to it? Like seeing a ghost or something otherworldly and supernatural. When something weird or paranormal happens to you, who the hell do you even reach out to? Who would even take you seriously?
You know, I never believed in ghosts, aliens, monsters, or anything like that. I’ve always been a pragmatist when it comes to most things. Most weird things just always seem to have very simple explanations. Occam’s razor and all that.
This encounter that happened to me recently though is so utterly bizarre, that it’s gotten me re-evaluating my entire perspective on reality…
This took place just over a month ago. I’ll be honest, the whole thing has kept me up late into the morning hours thinking about the repercussions of what I experienced. If you have any thoughts on what any of this means, please let me know.
So, I’ve recently been volunteering at a local food bank and homeless shelter in the city. I’d love to say this is because I’m such a good person but unfortunately my “volunteering” is the result of a few mistakes I made with drinking and driving. Although technically, my work at the shelter is court mandated, I do quite enjoy it. It just feels really good helping people that are in need.
Anyway, I had been volunteering at this place already for a few weeks when one morning the strangest looking man that I’d ever seen walks right in through the front doors. The first thing that struck me about this person was just how tall he was. I’m pretty tall myself at 6’4 but this guy easily towered over me. He must have been over 7’1 at least. His skin was also incredibly pale but pale in a way that suggested he avoided the outside. His skin may have been darker but seemed faded somehow. Like he had never seen the sun in his entire life.
This guy’s head, down from which flowed incredibly long, shiny black hair, also seemed abnormally large. Maybe his skull was normal sized though and just stood in contrast to his towering, skinny frame.
When this guy walked up to the food line where I was stationed, I thought that he was going to grab a tray. Instead, this guy was so strange looking that when he peered down at me with these murky eyes I honestly think that I audibly Gulped. I didn’t know whether this guy was about to rip me to shreds or break down into a fit of sobs.
I motioned for him to grab a tray, but he just continued to stare at me for what must have been two whole minutes. I finally found my voice and asked whether he was all right. He kind of coughed a bit and shook his head. It looked like maybe he shook his head side to side to say no but, I wasn’t sure. Like someone who didn’t know how to shake their head if that makes any sense.
I walked around the counter to grab a tray for him and when I did, I noticed that he wasn’t wearing any shoes. That’s not that uncommon from what I’ve seen. Maybe he was robbed last night if he was sleeping on the street. Plus, his odd behavior could have been that he was high or suffering from a bad reaction to something. I just couldn’t tell.
That’s when he finally spoke. Or at least tried to speak. It sounded like he couldn’t quite put together words or his tongue was too large for his mouth. He looked scared as hell at this point, and I felt so bad for the guy. I grabbed a tray and started to put some simple breakfast items on it for him, but he looked so…defeated. It broke my heart.
I think I helped him sit down at one of the empty tables. Before I walked away, he grabbed my shirt sleeve with a grip that was sadly weak.
He tried speaking again and this time I heard him ask questions, each one indecipherable but I could tell they were questions since they ended in a rising tone. I couldn’t be totally sure but the last one that he asked me, it sounded like he was asking me to help him use the bathroom. Of course, I have no idea how to “help” someone use the bathroom, so I freaked out slightly and told him that I had to go back to the kitchen.
I’ll admit, I just don’t know how to do stuff like that, help someone in need like that. I’ve never been a caregiver and I definitely wasn’t a social worker or anything, so I left him alone and tried to go back to work. I felt so guilty though afterwards that I later stepped out to my truck and brought back my new sneakers that I was planning to wear later to the gym. Since I’m a bigger guy, with admittedly big feet, I figured they would probably fit him as well. I gave them to this lanky guy, and he smiled… kind of. Like it was a very strange smile that seemed to tire him out. He put the sneakers on without tying the shoelaces but seemed very happy with them.
Honestly, I was feeling pretty good for the rest of the day from my good deed. The following morning, I saw this giant guy again and was somewhat relieved. As soon as they opened the doors that morning, he was the first one to enter. His entrance involved him putting both elongated, slender arms on the side of the opened door frame and ducking his giant head under the top as he pulled him inside. Thankfully, he seemed to look slightly better. He walked right up to me, still wearing the new sneakers that I gave to him, and he said “Hi”.
I smiled at him and said “Hi” back. At this point, he reached over and tried to grab one the metallic food trays himself. The tray though slipped out of his long, bony fingers and clanged onto the ground. He looked slightly embarrassed, but I told him that it was okay. I noticed he still hadn’t tied the shoelaces on the shoes that I gave him yesterday, so I pointed that out to him.
“Don’t worry about the tray buddy, I got it. They can be slippery! My name is Ronan, by the way. What is yours?”, I asked. He grumbled something that sounded like Sarl.
“Why don’t I grab your food and you can tie your shoelaces and find a spot to sit? I’ll bring it over to you after I’m done”, I told him.
Here is what was strange at this point. After I got his food and tried to bring it out to him a few minutes later, I noticed he was really struggling with the shoelaces. I went over and tied them for him. I did the second sneaker’s laces very slowly so he could see how it was done. He looked completely clueless so I’m sure he didn’t get it.
That’s when I realized that this guy might have some neurological issue. Either that or he was lost and had some amnesia or something. I felt so bad that I just wanted to give the guy a hug. His awkward smile reminded me of some shyly confused golden retriever. Before I could do anything though, he sharply grabbed my arm. His grip, although pretty weak, was lightning fast.
“Take me Yishin Peas!”
At first, I thought he meant something about peas, like for breakfast. When I asked him if he meant “Peas” his face flushed red with anger, and he grabbed my shirt collar with his other hand and screamed directly into my face…
“PLEASE!!!”
That sudden scream scared the shit out of me. I fumbled around trying to take his strangely weak grip off my shirt color.
“Take me Yisheng, please!”, the giant repeated.
I asked whether he meant someone that worked at the shelter. Someone named Yisheng and he shook his head wildly. This was definitely a No.
“A Medical”, he added.
I didn’t know anyone named “Yisheng”. No one works here like that, I told him. But he kept saying please over and over and over and then he started to cry.
If this all sounds strange so far, you have no idea what’s coming…
Anyway, I was about to call over the security that we have, who was actually a guy smaller than me, to somehow help. As a last resort though, I asked him if he wanted me to take him to the hospital, since he said “Medical”. This time he seemed to agree and smiled broadly.
I told him that I couldn’t take him. I had to finish my shift so they would sign off on my volunteer hours for the judge, but I told him that I would help him. I asked Will, who was another volunteer, whether he would drive Sarl to the hospital as a favor to me. Will reluctantly agreed and said he could drive him in his Prius, which I was genuinely curious how Sarl was even going to fit into. I gave Sarl a twenty and told him to use that to buy lunch or something if he needed. Then I asked Will to help him please if he had any trouble. Will looked so apprehensive standing next to this towering ghost of a man.
I had trouble sleeping after that second day of seeing “Sarl”. Something about this lanky giant seemed so wrong and out of place. I kept dreaming this nightmare where this towering “Slender Man” with Sarl’s face was peering into my second story windows at night, desperate and angry for help. He would plead with his strange “mouth full” accent but I just couldn’t respond. I cowered in my bed and prayed that he would go away but he would just keep staring at me with his sorrowful murky eyes.
After a few days off that weekend, and another three sleepless nights, I had to go back for my final day of “volunteering”. That morning I noticed that I lost my cell phone and couldn’t find it anywhere. I eventually gave up looking and resigned myself to driving to the shelter without it or the convenience of GPS. Of course, I felt completely naked and lost without GPS, despite having driven to the shelter dozens of times. Even with my mom giving me easy directions before I left, I immediately forgot what she told me. It took me two hours to find the building when it normally just took me fifteen minutes!
Will, the other volunteer, was already there when I arrived. He was anxiously waiting for me to get there to tell me what happened to Sarl. Will then proceeded to tell me the most fucking bizarre story about his day with “Sarl” at the hospital that I will never forget for the rest of my life.
Somehow, on the drive to the hospital, Will was able to communicate with Sarl. Maybe it was because Will was an ESL but he seemed to comprehend whatever Sarl was trying to say in his garbled speech. Will told me that Sarl said that he was in trouble and asked if he could live with Will. Obviously Will immediately said no but that he would try to help him.
At this point, Will said he was scared shitless after Sarl asked him that in the car. Since Will is a nice guy, he stayed at the hospital while they evaluated Sarl. None of the nurses or admitting doctor could really understand Sarl’s odd way of speaking. So, the nurse came back to the waiting room and asked whether Will could assist them.
Will ventured back to the examining room where he found Sarl absolutely losing his mind. He looked positively deranged, according to Will. He was screaming about not deserving what they did to him. He said he had to link his parents, whatever that meant. The doctors asked where his parents were, but Sarl kept saying that he didn’t do it and it wasn’t “gone ping to”. It wasn’t going ping to. He didn’t want to die. The doctors asked why he thought he was going to die and that’s when Sarl said this.
“I CAN’T LIVE IN THE PAST!!!”
He screamed that over and over and over and they ended up sedating him. Will freaked out and eventually went home. Will didn’t come back to the shelter that day, which is why I didn’t see Will until a few days later. We eventually called the hospital and asked what happened to Sarl but they said that they aren’t allowed to disclose that information to us.
What do you think? I’m assuming Sarl had some form of schizophrenia but everything about this strange giant was so weird that I just can’t get this guy out of my head. Like I could totally believe this weird looking dude was somehow from the future. He definitely didn’t look like any guy I had seen before or in history books.
Also, as if I didn’t need another reason to lose sleep, Will told me one more thing about Sarl that has kind of got me freaking out a bit. Will said that on his way out of the hospital room where Sarl was being sedated, Sarl told Will one last thing. He told Will to be very careful. Anyone that was found helping Sarl would be sentenced to death as well.