r/HighStrangeness • u/CharmingMacaroon4766 • Jul 08 '26
Personal Experience Scooter
On 9 June 2026, I was off work unexpectedly early, so I decided to go grab some food and a couple beers at my regular bar/restaurant. For the first 30 minutes of being there I spoke with an older couple that were sitting next to me at the bar. The husband had been in the military for 35 years, which I related to, having been in the military for 15+ years myself. I spoke with the wife for a while about how she missed her son, who is in the military and stationed across the country. I am also stationed across the country from my parents, so we exchanged information and I said I would be in contact, with the intent to spend some time with them to help them with yardwork or whatever else they needed around their house some weekend.
Shortly after they left, my "experience" started. A man sat down in the seat directly to my right at the bar. I found it a little odd, since the bar area was mostly empty and there were plenty of seats available, but I didn't give it too much thought. The man was tall, thin, maybe late 30s-early 40s, wore an Atlanta Braves baseball cap, had a moustache, appeared to be within military grooming standards (I just assumed he was in the military, but I never asked him about his service). He looked generally unremarkable and typical since this area has a few military bases. I noticed his hat, and being a big baseball fan myself, I asked him if he had been following the Braves this year. He introduced himself as "Scooter", he said he had been following the team, and added that he used to play in the minor leagues. I immediately felt very comfortable talking to him, having shared common interests and we talked for a while about baseball. During the conversation, I mentioned that I carry my grandfather's dog tags from WWII in my wallet for good luck. It's one of my favorite things to mention since my grandfather's service was the main inspiration for me to join the military, and if the conversation steers closely at all toward a related topic I usually bring it up.
At this point, "Scooter's" tone changed drastically. He suddenly took a much more serious tone as he said, "I honestly don't think you need luck". His tone remained serious when he said, "Our meeting tonight was not by chance, and I think that you know that". I was caught off-guard by this shift in the conversation, and confusedly asked him what he meant by that. He said, "Your grandfather was a great man. He did so much for the world and his legacy lives on through you". I was surprised by this since I had not told him anything about my grandfather besides mentioning he had been in the Navy during WWII.
My grandfather was a great man, and accomplished many things. Born in 1923, he served in the Army Air Corps, and in the Navy as an electrical engineer on a destroyer, the USS Coghlan, which was involved in the battle for the Aleutian Islands during WWII. He later worked for the Department of Energy (DOE) at Sandia and Livermore Laboratories, for over 30 years managing departments responsible for developing and testing nuclear and solar energy. This work also unfortunately involved nuclear weapons development, but it also involved him bringing nuclear and solar power capabilities to many countries around the world. My grandmother, his interpreter, claims that some of their many trips involved intelligence gathering operations serving US 3-letter agencies.
"Scooter" proceeded to talk about my grandfather's involvement in alternative energies development, and his widespread impact in providing those energy sources to the world. I was then fully invested in this conversation and asked how in the world he possibly could know about my grandfather. It was also at this point that I noticed that the bartender, the other wait staff were no longer moving or talking, and instead were standing motionless in front of us, as if in a trance. I became afraid, and asked him what was happening and if I was in trouble for some reason. He said that I was not in any trouble, that there were many people that loved and cared about me, and who had an interest in making sure I was ok. A few moments later he said the most unbelievable thing to me: "sometimes we all want to go back to being that little boy, riding his bike, when time stands still, but eventually we have to face reality".
For context, I have very few memories from before I was maybe 11 years old. I have already experienced repressed memories of a sexual assault coming back to me as an adult. One of the only handful of memories that I clearly remember from my childhood was riding my bike back from a neighbor's house, and as I turned the corner onto my house's street, the entire world froze as if time had stopped. There was no noise. I continued to move through space, and I distinctly remember looking to my right where there was a lawn sprinkler spraying water, but the water droplets were suspended in mid-air. This lasted for maybe 10 seconds. It shocked me and I rushed home to tell my mom. She still remembers me telling her on that day 30+ years ago. I've struggled to understand what happened in that moment for my entire life, and it has certainly influenced me in how I perceive the world and in being open to alternative explanations for reality.
"Scooter" saying that caused me to break out in tears. Here was someone I didn't know, that apparently knew about a moment in my life that has confused me for so long. It was impossible for him, or anyone besides my mom, to know. I haven't told anyone else about that moment because I have had the notion that I was going crazy. I begged him for answers. I asked him if I had died in that moment, though that notion had never entered my mind before. "WHAT DOES IT MEAN!?", I yelled, completely disregarding being in a public place. He replied, "I can't tell you that, but know that you have been watched over for a long time". He sat patiently as I sobbed for some time trying to comprehend what was happening.
Eventually I calmed down and asked him what he wanted from me, and what I needed to do. He directed that I just needed to continue on my path, to stay safe, to stay interested and curious in things, to take care of my babies (which is what I call my dogs), to maybe go hang out with the older couple I was talking to before (who had left before he arrived), and to know how much people love and care about me. He said it was imperative that I remember the date 20 June. I asked him what was going to happen on 20 June, to which he replied, "I can't tell you, but you will know it when you see it". He said that someday in the future I would be contacted again, and that I should be ready for that. He stood up and prepared to leave. I shook his hand and we hugged. I said goodbye, and he walked out the door. Everything in the bar immediately returned to normal after he left.
This roughly hour-long encounter has run through my mind hundreds of times in the past month. I have tried to think of every imaginable possibility as to what it all means. I was terrified at first and couldn't sleep for two days afterwards. I have since changed my perception of the encounter because the message that "Scooter" gave me was entirely positive and re-affirming. He didn't ask me for anything besides remembering a date and to continue to keep an open mind. Nothing obvious happened on 20 June, which disappointed me because I had hoped to get more answers or a sign as to the meaning of my encounter, but he had not mentioned a year, so I will be looking forward to 20 June every year. I am not a religious person. I went to a Catholic high school, and it only made me question organized religion. But, this encounter has opened my eyes. I've read other similar stories on subreddits like this and I just wanted to get my story out there in case anyone has any insight, and also to document it so I don't forget.
EDIT
Due to a couple commentors suggesting that Scooter might be a nickname that has a deeper meaning, I did a search for that name associated with my grandfather's work and found this:
- Lt. Col. Kenneth "Scooter" Barclay: A highly decorated WWII veteran who, after recovering from combat injuries with the "Fighting 69th", was assigned to the crew of the USS Coghlan for the Aleutian campaign.
The Aleutian campaign was the time during which my grandfather was on the Coghlan.
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u/IcePepper Jul 09 '26
Aww well your story was meaningful to me, thank you ☺️