Menu: Parenting
By: Jessica Harmon
Updated: October 9, 2023
Originally Published: October 13, 2017
When I was about 7, an unsettling event struck a close family friend. My mother sent my sister and me out with our older cousin, while she waited for news by the phone. Our cousin took us to all our favorite spots around the neighborhood, but I couldn’t shake my sadness. I just sobbed uncontrollably, repeating, “He’s gone. He’s gone.” When we returned home, we learned the heartbreaking news that our friend had indeed passed away while we were away. I wasn’t a child psychic, but it was undeniably eerie.
Whether they remind you of clowns from a circus or the infamous Pennywise from It, there’s no denying that kids can be downright creepy at times. They seem to predict death (sometimes accurately), claim to see ghosts, and engage in all sorts of bizarre behaviors that can send chills down your spine—or make you chuckle. It’s a mix of both, really.
When my eldest son was just 3, he created a drawing for my husband. “That’s the spider that crawls in your mouth when you’re asleep,” he casually informed him. Excuse me, what?!
Another parent, Lily, shared that while in the kitchen, her 6-year-old stepdaughter turned to her and ominously stated, “When I snap, you’ll be the first to go.” It turned out to be a phrase from her mom’s coffee mug, but still… goosebumps, anyone?
On a Reddit thread titled “Parents of Reddit, What’s the Creepiest Thing Your Child’s Ever Said to You?”, a user named curious_mom revealed, “All my childhood games ended in a mass murder of all but one of the toys.” Yikes! Sweet child, you are absolutely not getting one of those bizarre talking dolls for Christmas this year.
Kids sometimes seem to possess knowledge they shouldn’t. At age 13, after bidding farewell to my grandmother, a voice in my head urged me to go back and kiss her one last time, warning that it would be the final goodbye. I did, and shortly after, she had a heart attack and passed away.
When my oldest son found out he was going to be a big brother, he was adamant that the baby would arrive on Halloween. Despite our attempts to explain that the due date was “around Halloween,” he remained convinced. And guess what? The baby was born on Halloween. Because, of course, every spine-tingling tale seems to happen on that day.
In a similar vein, another mom, Sarah, recalled that her 4-year-old looked at her on election morning and said, “I’m sorry, Mommy, but Hillary isn’t going to win. Trump is.” Ouch.
Then there are those kids who claim to see things. I once witnessed a door shut by itself when I was about 12, with no breeze or anything else to explain it. Reddit user QuagmirePD shared that his daughter saw a “man with a snake neck” in their closet. Another commenter, Darin, reported that his co-worker’s daughter was frightened by the pipes in the house, but even more scared of “the man who crawls on the floor and stands by her bed.”
Perhaps our kids should be the ones checking for monsters under the bed because this is all super creepy.
My friend Angela recounted a time when she was a child, and the car radio suddenly cut out, emitting a loud static noise. While her mom attributed it to strange radio waves, her 4-year-old sister insisted it was “Rachel” who turned off the music. When asked who Rachel was, she simply stated, “a girl like me, she’s right there”—a girl only she could see. Chilling, right?
And then there are the exceptionally creepy kids. I’m hesitant even to share these stories.
User RatedRx probably takes the cake for creepiness when she recounted a time as a waitress. A little girl kept stabbing her sandwich with a plastic fork, muttering “Die die die die die.” When the waitress approached to ask what she was doing, the child replied, completely straight-faced, “I like to kill things, but Mom says I shouldn’t. So I picked the ham because it can’t scream.” Yikes.
In short, kids can be quite creepy. They engage in bizarre play, claim to see the supernatural, predict significant life events, and even talk about past lives or deceased individuals. Yes, kids are undeniably strange and eerie. That terrifying clown from It pales in comparison.
For more insights from real-life parents, tune into our Modern Family Blog podcast, where we discuss these spine-chilling tales and more.
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Summary:
Kids can sometimes be downright creepy, exhibiting behaviors and insights that are truly unsettling. From predicting deaths to claiming they see ghosts, these little ones often leave us with chills and laughter alike. Whether they’re drawing ominous pictures or making eerie statements, it’s clear that children have a knack for the uncanny.