If we lived in California there'd be an easy explanation: Earthquake.
But we live in McKinney, so there's no logical reason why our house mysteriously shook this morning at 6 a.m.
I was yanked from my sleep by what sounded like the loud, violent slamming of a door, followed by the rattling of the large piece of iron art on the wall above our bed. Simultaneously, my wife shot up off her pillow and one of our dogs - from the far, opposite corner of the house - began barking as if startled.
Something happened. But what?
At first I thought it was our son, up ridiculously early and, for some reason, slamming the door that leads to our garage. Getting a drink out of the garage fridge to pack in his lunch, maybe. But after the dog quieted and the rattling ceased, not a peep. I investigated.
When I found him sound asleep in his bed - instant chills. And, I'll admit it, a little fear.
But a quick, frantic check of every window and every door in every room revealed they were all closed and locked, including the door to the garage. The garage door was shut. The pool was running as scheduled. The newspaper was in the driveway. The night lights were on. The cash to give our neighbor's girl for Girl Scout Cookies was unmoved. Nothing was out of place.
Hmm. Panic melted into ponder.
Impossible for someone - or something? - to have been inside our house and left, seeing that everything was locked. And the fact that I'm typing this seems to prove that no one came into our house from the outside and is still here. (No, I don't think the call is coming from inside the house.) So what then?
I'll be honest, weird things have happened in this house since we arrived in 2004. Light bulbs randomly flicker and burn out ridiculously fast. Ceiling fans turn on and switch speeds by themselves. One room, despite numerous tweaks from various companies, stays 12 degrees hotter than the rest of the house. Granted, those seem like merely electrical gremlins, effed-up venting or the lingering effects of lightning striking a tree across the street a few years back.
But when I snapped wide awake at 4:34 a.m. - no, I mean exactly 4:34 - for four consecutive nights and twice found a large, framed picture in our hallway not only off its wire hanger on the wall, but upright and undamaged on the concrete-slab floor directly beneath, that's when we consulted a psychic.
A "spirit guide" she said, trying to get my attention. That was years ago and, between you and me, I didn't totally buy it.
But this morning, I heard it. My wife heard it. Our dog sensed it. Our house felt it. We all experienced ... something.
If you're a psychic, a paranormal, a Ghost Buster or just a northern Collin County resident whose house mysteriously shook this morning, we'd love an explanation. Or at least an educated guess.
Anyone?
