An unusual ghost story with photo evidence

Is there such a thing as ghosts?

Robbie Hodge

I asked the question when I was a toddler. My dad told me there was not. End of story.

Or was it?  All my life I've seen them, but because I had no compelling need to share that information with anyone, I never mentioned it. "Oh, you have a dead guy living in your house."  It just didn't seem appropriate or necessary.

First one I "ran into" was a fellow who was living in my apt. in Santa Monica. How do I know it was a fella?  Because I saw him numerous times. About 5'8, then, brown hair.  At first I was FREAKED OUT because he would sit on my bed in the middle of the night and wake me up.

Then I woke up to find him sleeping NEXT TO ME in bed.  "Okay buster!" I jumped out of bed. He disappeared. I said "Stop that!  You're welcome to be here, I just don't want you to wake me up anymore!"

He didn't.

Until the next door neighbor came screaming into my apt.  She had just moved into an apt. that had oddly been empty for years.  She said "I was brushing my teeth and this guy was standing in the mirror behind me! I turned and he disappeared!  I said "Oh, was he about 5'8, brown hair? Yeah, he lives here. Just tell him not to bother you."

Didn't seem to calm her down.

There was the guy who woke me up in Sydney Australia. Was staying at Phillip Noyce's home in Darlinghurst; he was having a 20th anniversary party of his film "Newsfront" and had invited me down. He had sold the house, so it was empty save for a bed and a couple of plates and a working fridge.  I spent three weeks in his nearly empty apt.

All no longer on the planet. But all keeping an eye on us.

Nearly because I shared it with a ghost.  I woke one morning to see a guy "Hanging from a rafter."  He saw me see him and said with an Aussie accent "Sorry mate, it's just something I feel the need to do."  He proceeded to pull the rope (which wasn't attached! Yet he was hanging!) and descended down a ladder which "appeared" beneath him. I noted he was wearing painters clothes.

Later that day, I asked Phillip's wife Jan Sharp about it.  She looked at me wide eyed. "Wwhwhat?" She asked as only an Aussie can.  I told her the story; she said "Well our painter hanged himself a few blocks from here in his own home."  I said "Well, he must like your place because he's still hanging around."

Badum bum. 

Or the Iroquois Indian who stood over me in the apt. I was in while teaching in Camden Maine at the Workshops.  He was in full battle gear, holding an axe and a giant knife, his arms dripping in blood (or red paint, I had no idea) and he was SCREAMING at the top of his lungs at me in Iroquois (I guess - I don't speak it. Later I looked up the gear, thinking he was a Mohawk, but realized it was more Iroquois than Mohawk.)  I assumed he was saying "Wake up and get the F out of my place!"  

Iroquois fella

I sat up and he disappeared.  But I definitely saw him.  I said "Look, I'll be gone in a couple of weeks.  Please don't do that!"  I slept with every light on in the place, the tv on, the clock radio on.  I barely slept for the two weeks I taught that film class.

There have been many others; old hotels in Colorado (Boulderado), old apts. in Washington DC (older man watching me sleep) - I just assumed EVERYONE must have a guy or two hanging around their apts or old houses.

Taj Martini

Then I started my documentary into the Flipside in 2011, and started hearing ghost stories from people who were the ghosts themselves - people remembering previous lifetime where they HAUNTED some place - when asked "why" they would say "Because I felt comfortable doing it."  Not because they were "trapped between lives" or the "devil made them do it" - just because they felt more comfortable repeating that journey, whatever it was, the emotion of it - instead of "going back home" (the term people have used in the 45 deep hypnosis cases I've filmed and transcribed in my books "Flipside" "It's a Wonderful Afterlife" and "Hacking the Afterlife."

Robbie Hodge

The other day, a mom posted a really touching, heart warming message about the loss of her son.  I reproduce it here, because it's worth repeating.

I sent her a note on Facebook, telling her a little about the research and how some people who are suffering immeasurably, can be helped by this kind of work.  She replied with a note of emojis that meant basically "thanks for the love."

Then yesterday, she posted something really unusual.  It was from the "Nest" app in her house, that records any movement.  Perhaps to keep an eye on things while away, but it clearly recorded a ghostly image of someone who looks an awful lot like her son.

From the Hodge Nest camera

I've compared the photos - and read all the comments about people who knew her son, and are convinced it is him.

Just visiting

I would offer that it was a younger version of him - to my eye.  How can that be?

For those who've read "Flipside" they'll know my friend Luana Anders came to visit me often after her passing, but always in younger form - about the age of 20, about 18 years younger than when I met her.  I recognized her instantly in these visitations, by her voice, her vibe, our connection together - and was startled to learn that people on the flipside can appear "as they would like to appear."

So appearing at a younger age would make sense for someone wanted to hang out in his mom's house.

Here's what I posted on FB: 

Some better angles on this angel. We get caught up in words; "ghost," "angel" "death." (Can't be dead if he's still alive; can't be gone if he's still here.) "Believe" is a faith term. People looking at this photo will say "can't be." "trick of light" invent, argue, convince themselves life ends. 

Deny the ghost in the machine. Ignore what consciousness is. It's not my theory, opinion or belief life goes on, it's just what thousands consistently say under deep hypnosis. And also not under hypnosis. Ecce uomo. 

Beyond that; they say "try to fathom why you chose to come here. It makes the path smoother. Leave fresh air, water, earth for your next trip here." My two cents. 

His mom is Jennifer Bryant Hodge

Jennifer Bryant Hodge (via Kennedy News & Media)

Yay Jennifer!  Thank you for sharing your experience and your boy with us!!!

But the reason I'm commenting on this story - is not because it proves that life goes on - because of course that's subjective.  I wanted to point out that people - even the ones who get smacked in the face with a fish - still can't believe that a fish could jump out of the water even when they get smacked in the face by one.

Can you hear me now?

Further, there are many people who take a sign of the flipside as being 'I TOLD YOU SO!" or 'PROOF OF ANGELS!" or "I TOLD YOU TO BELIEVE IN GOD!"  One person asked "Did your son believe in Jesus Christ our lord and Savior?"

That's code.  I know it's code because my dear niece said it to me when I told her that her grandfather, my father had come to visit me in our home in Santa Monica. My daughter saw him, said "Grandpa is here" and he told her that he had come to see the new baby, that he loved us very much, and that we "needed a bigger home" just for the toys we had.  I thought it was cute, charming... she worried it was the devil.  

Per Lachaise, circa 1995.

She said "Did you ask him if he believed in our savior, the lord Jesus Christ?"  I paused.  I can't imagine our 4 year old daughter stopping to say "Hey, you, guy who looks just like grandpa, what the heck are you doing here? You got ID?"  People are so convinced that their church or religion has the only answers that they get stuck in the dogma.

I can tell you that in the thousands of cases that I've examined, the 45 I've filmed - zero, none have ever claimed that any religion is correct, or even close to being accurate about the afterlife.  They offer that all religions are about the same topic - love, loving each other - and that they are all part of the same garden. Muslim, Jew, Catholic, Jehovah's Witness, Atheists - it doesn't matter.  

We all head back "home" after our lifetime - there is no hierarchy over there, there is no prison (other than what we might suffer over what negative things we've done in life) - but no, there's not someone with a guest list on the flipside, no one at the pearly gates.

Jennifer Shaffer, medium extraordinaire.

Except Luana Anders. 

For those who are fans of "Backstage Pass to the Flipside" they'll know that during an interview with none other than Tom Petty, he identified her as the "person with the clipboard" in terms of conversing with me and Jennifer Shaffer, my medium friend who works with law enforcement nationwide on missing person cases.  Tom said "She's like the person with the guest list, and if you're not on it, you don't get to talk to Rich and Jennifer." He dubbed our book "Backstage Pass to the Flipside."

This is who stops you at the door to our class. If she lets you in,
you get to talk to me and Jennifer.  I'm just sayin'. Luana Anders
in Rockefeller Plaza

It's not something I would have called it, nor would have Jennifer.  We did not ask Tom if our lord and savior Jesus Christ was part of this mix - because if he just turned around he'd find Jesus sitting in one of the chairs. (Oh yeah, that's right, he's been interviewed extensively in "Hacking the Afterlife.") What he has to say about why he was on the planet and what he's still doing in terms of his work off the planet is pretty unusual.  


I won't paraphrase him, but suffice to say, he is someone who walks around with tons of unconditional love, he is someone who helps people realize "it's not their time" during a near death experience, and he is that fellow that people often call upon for help - which he will attend to if its within his ability to do so.  

It's a building JC didn't build.

You see not everyone signs up for a lifetime to have everything work, or be solved. They come here to the planet to learn deep and profound lessons about life, about love, about pain, about suffering, about joy - and yes, about losing those things by leaving the planet.  All of those are within the research.

It's not my theory, belief or opinion people say these things consistently about the afterlife, I'm just filming them do so.

Which brings us back to Bobby Hodge.

Here in this photograph.

Visiting his mom.

He's younger now, because he wants to be younger. He's still hanging around because like most of our loved ones, they want to keep an eye on us, they want to be part of our journey, they want to communicate with us, but most of us "don't believe they exist" so we make it harder for them to do so.


But thank god for Nest.

Because despite whatever someone might say about this photograph - that it's younger than he was when he departed for example - they aren't aware that people can "appear at any age" when they cross over.

For example, my dear aunt Elma, a devout Catholic if I ever met one, was in bed one night when her husband appeared at the end of it. She told me he was about 25, the year she had met him. He said to her "I love you. I'm okay. Just wanted to say goodbye."  Seconds later the phone rang with the hospital telling her that her 85 year old husband had passed in the hospital. She told no one that story but me - not even her religious children.  And even when I told them the story they disbelieved it. 

For this particular mom it's proof positive that her son still exists. That he isn't "gone" he's just "not here."  

It doesn't have to be proof to anyone else - nor should it be. In my ten years of research I've learned that not everyone signs up to learn how the play ends.  Not everyone is supposed to know the inner workings of the ghost in the machine.  And that's okay too - it's okay to be on the football field in the midst of a life or death battle, while it's also okay to be in the stands, popping a soda, spilling popcorn and cheering our loved ones on.

We do both, and we do them often.  

So now you know.  Life goes on. We choose our lifetimes.  Take the time to contemplate why you chose this particular path, this particular journey. As well as why you chose to click on this article and have read all the way to the end.



I got an email yesterday from a fan in Canada. He said he was driving down the road 6 years ago, turned on Coast to Coast AM radio and heard me talking about the flipside to George Noory. 

Jennifer Shaffer and George Noory

He said suddenly he realized he was weeping. Tears of joy were coming down his cheeks, because what he was hearing was ringing a bell in his heart.  Ringing some kind of truth that he needed to hear at that moment.  He's learned how to do hypnotherapy and is now working on helping other people.

All I can say is "Don't thank me. Thank the folks on the flipside who directed you to that radio station so you could hear me talk about what people consistently say about the journey."   

Finally - as I was typing this post, this FB comment came in:

"Hypnosis should not be really trusted,it’s really an occult practice...people don’t realize this and when you let someone hypnotize you ,you are actually leaving room for something else to come into your vessel...just not a good thing to do or trust...just my 2 cents."

(I often add "my two cents" to my posts, a way of saying, "at least that's what I've learned."  I get the snarcastic comment.) To which I replied:

"Don't be silly. You hypnotize yourself every time you binge watch TV.  Hypnosis is no different than guided meditation - unless you've tried it you really don't have an idea of what it's about.  Doctors use it to treat patients with psychosomatic illnesses (Dr. Brian Weiss, I could cite hundreds more) and I've seen it heal and cure people of a variety of health issues.  

Having spent ten years filming people under deep hypnosis, having done 5 sessions myself, having filmed 45 sessions and examined thousands of cases - I'm not sure why you would even write this comment.  If you had the experience yourself, I can understand - but obviously you have not - all I can say is "it's not for everyone my dear."  

Not everyone is supposed to understand that they chose their parents, chose their lifetime, chose what they're supposed to learn and who they're going to teach or help in this lifetime.  

All I can tell you is that there's a reason someone on the flipside wanted you to reach out to me - read Michael Newton's "Journey of Souls" and you'll see how hypnosis can help people worldwide. I'm not a hypnotist, I am not trying to get anyone to try hypnosis - I'm just filming people who are doing it - I've chosen them because of their religious beliefs or lack of them - used different hypnotherapists - and they all say the same basic things. 

Anyways, love to you! And thanks for taking the time to express your opinion... my work is not theory, opinion or belief - I've just been filming people for ten years saying the same things during the process - and as of late, filming people not under any hypnosis at all saying the same things. XXX"

And that really is my two cents!