I really can't tell if my being nearsighted is more of a problem than a blessing. Sure, it makes me more confident in talking publicly when I don't clearly see the faces glued on me. But beyond that, my myopia prevents me from seeing the strange visions I had when I was a kid, when I had 20/20 vision. Well, almost.

When we were young, I and my cousins used to hang out every afternoon at the third floor of our house where my grandmother was staying. In one instance, I sat near a window where I could see white puffy clouds. What surprised me was that I saw a comet-like object flying through the clouds. I knew my elementary science—it is impossible to see through the naked eye a comet during daytime. My basic knowledge of anatomy also tells me that my vision though perfect at that time was not telescopic.I knew it was not a comet but it had the same color as the clouds it passed through, almost serving as its camouflage. I immediately told my lola of what I saw. But she told me what I already knew—that it is impossible. Or is it?

Funny that when I googled, I learned that there were a lot of sightings of a comet-like flying object in other parts of the world. Not the usual flying saucer. A comet-like UFO I saw in the skies of Guadalupe.

Another strange vision I had happened at night. Every adult in our house were on the first floor of our house. I was the only one staying at the second floor when I saw through our window a round cluster of green, red and white orbs. It was no plane. It hovered above us without creating a sound. It was so large it was almost touching our roof. Had it been a plane, it could have created a noise and its size should have been relatively smaller.

Again, the adults did not believe me. If only we had digital cellphone cameras at that time, I'd have proof. This experience is somehow similar to what another blogger saw in Batangas.

As a kid, seeing the extraterrestrial could excite a young mind. But if you're seeing the supernatural, it would freak you out.

It started when I woke up from a bad dream at around five in the morning. I forgot what the nightmare was about but I remember rising from the bed because of fear. I saw my parents on my left still asleep in our bed. My eyes then shifted to our window. There I saw a red inhuman figure about 3 inches tall standing on the roof of our relatives' house. Its face was blurred but it was facing me. I immediately covered my face with a blanket and acted as if I did not see it.

As I grew up, I did not see anything supernatural, if you don't count waking up because your bed was shaking at three in the morning. Thanks to my poor vision, it seemed that I could no longer see anything paranormal. That was what I thought.

In 2008, I rented a room with a proportionate size of a matchbox near a TV network where I used to work. Again, I woke from a bad dream, but this time, I can't move a single joint in my body. I could only see the rest of my body lying flat on my bed. I tried screaming but no sound came out from my mouth. At the edge of my bed, I then saw a ghostly female dressed in black floating above my feet. I prayed to Jesus that he'd save me from this paranormal paralysis. Soon enough, I was able to move my body. The ghostly figure disappeared.

I had experiences of not being able to move my body even if my mind was awake before, but it was the first time I saw an ominous figure watching how I struggled to move. "Struggled to move" —  that makes no sense, but it happened to me.

Again, I looked it up in the web and learned that it is what we Filipinos call "bangungot" or in medical terms, sleep paralysis. It is called sudden unexpected death syndrome or SUDS if the person dies during sleep. SUDS affects 43 in every 100,000 Filipinos every year, most of the victims are young males.

It is associated with the acute hemorrhagic pancreatitis. Remember Rico Yan? But it is said that the acute pancreatitis is just the result of SUDS. No one can still pinpoint what causes sleep paralysis.

And what about the lady in black that I saw floating above my feet? Folklores around the world, including the Philippines, have associated sleep paralysis to be the work of either a demon or a ghost. This painting in 1781 creeps me out.

Thanks to my poor vision, I could have seen the female spirit or demon, or whatever she was, much clearer.

Come to think of it, some people would dismiss the strange visions I had because of my poor vision. Because of my negative 225 nearsightedness, I could now rationalize that those visions are the bad results of a poor eyesight. And until I'd have enough money for a Lasik treatment, I would have an excuse-“malabo lang ang mata ko kaya may nakita akong katabi mo habang binabasa mo ito.”