Something that not many people see is the inner creativity of teachers at West. I emailed teachers to see if they would like to contribute their own scary story (true or fiction) about Greenbrier West. 2 teachers gave me their stories, one of whom wished to stay anonymous. 

Writer: Anonymous [True Story!]

Title: The Ghost Poo

“Once, on a crisp Fall day, I found it necessary to relieve my bladder during my planning period.  On this occasion, I chose to visit the staff bathroom behind the main office.  Now, it’s customary for me to examine the latrine for cleanliness.  I also look for an absence of bodily waste, and this particular American Standard was in pristine condition inside and out.   In other words, there was no poo in the bowl.

I took care of my Number One business, and as I stood to complete this business i.e. flush, that’s when I saw it.  Staring at me from soulless eyeless eyes, at least a dozen inches in length, breaking the surface of the water was something I did not excrete……I double-checked to make sure.   Shaken, I quickly washed my hands twice with soap and ran from the bathroom without looking back.  I told all my work besties about my experience, but they thought I was just being silly.  I also told the students.  I had to at least warn them.  What if this were to happen to one of them?  What if it had already happened?  I needed answers.

A week later, the same thing happened to me.  Only this time, the little fella was flaking and degraded.  Its total mass had substantially lessened.  Also, the same week, a student confided in me that the same thing had happened to her in the Bottom of A bathroom.

So, when you go to the bathroom at Greenbrier West, beware.  Beware of the Ghost Poo of Cavalier Country.  But, then again, this was several years ago…perhaps the course of its journeys has caused it to disintegrate to a mere speck now.  We can only hope.” 

Writer: Marla Bell (West Art teacher) [FICTION]

Title: A Night at West

“ I was once like you.  Just a high school girl looking for fun on a Saturday night. My boyfriend and I made plans for a fun halloween adventure.  Not only were we looking to cause some mischief, but we were looking to have a night of telling scary stories to set the mood.  I waited at the Tasty Freeze, a local ice cream place.  The plan was to park down the road from Greenbrier West and walk our way up there.  We thought there may be a possibility that a window or door may be open to get inside. I waited and waited and waited. No one. It felt like I had been waiting there forever and he never showed. My patience was dwindling, so I decided to go ahead and head up to the school. Maybe he decided to head up there without me.  Maybe he forgot our plan.

As I approached the football field out in front of West, I could see what looked like a flashlight and a person standing in the large windows of the Library.  The person appeared to be looking down at me.  I waved my arms up in the air to get their attention and it looked as though they turned around to head down.  I walked around to the side of the building, where the buses let the students out. The door is already propped open. What a jerk. He just left me over there alone, waiting, and went inside without me. I headed up the stairs to the third floor where I thought I had seen my boyfriend looking down on me from the window. All of a sudden I hear footsteps, which go from a walking pace to now running. I try to follow the sound, but around every turn no one is there. What is going on? Why are you doing this to me? I thought we were coming here together, and now you are playing games with me.  This isn’t funny.   The running continues down stairwells, up stairwells, back down again. I am getting irritated.  The next thing I know I am at the very bottom of a building, in a basement? I didn’t even know we had a basement in this school. I notice the door slowly starting to shut and I grab it by the edge and slip through the door.  The door shuts, and locks. I turn quickly and try turning the doorknob but it doesn’t budge. My heart sinks. All of a sudden I hear creaking. Maybe it’s pipes, I tell myself. Then I hear scratching along some surface, like nails along a chalkboard. At first it was quiet but then it grew louder and louder.  The scraping noise was almost unbearable.  It sent shivers down my spine.   I yell out to my boyfriend “stop messing around! I know it’s you and you are trying to scare me and it’s not working.” But then, out from a dark corner in dim lighting, I see a black figure start to emerge from the shadows, lurking, moving very slowly. My heart is now in my throat. With a shaky voice I tremble and say “Is that you? Please stop. You really are scaring me now.” No reply.  Then a croaking, clicking noise begins.  I turn around and run to the door. The door is LOCKED. “HELP ME!” I scream. I continue screaming “HELP ME!”. I am now wildly shaking and jerking on the door handle trying to get it to open. What is this thing? I look a little closer.  It doesn’t have eyes, or a mouth.  It has long, twisted, gangly fingers, which were scraping along the walls. They seemed unrealistically long.  Before I know it, It slides up the wall.  Then it slithers up onto the ceiling. I am now rattling, violently shaking the door.  Screaming “SOMEONE HELP ME PLEASE, HELP ME!!”He grabs my ankle and drags me to the back, down into the dark depths.  That is the last thing I remember.  I am now doomed to roam the halls of Greenbrier West forever and stare down from the Library windows, waiting for his next victim to lure them into his home.” 

I think we can all agree that these are definitely interesting stories for sure. One of mystery with humor, and the other a piece that shows the horrific creativity of a teacher’s mind. Inner thoughts are amazing, because looking at someone from the outside you wouldn’t think they could come up with something like these. But creativity is beyond looks, it’s an inner form of spirit that makes you create an image or story that when read by others creates a fear nobody knew was possible.