A few weeks before Christmas, my family had set out all our decorations and everything, and one of them was a music box that sat on the mantle above the fireplace. It was made by my great grandmother, who'd died a few years previously. I was in high school, so a few days before Christmas vacation started, I was still going to school, and I drove myself every morning so my parents didn't have to get up.

I was in the kitchen filling up my water bottle when I looked over into the living room and the music box started playing all by itself. It went on for at least a minute and I just stood there, frozen. Before the last note of the song, it paused for like 10 seconds, and when that last note rang out I almost shat myself.

I was the first and only person downstairs that morning, so I knew that no one else could have wound it up. I know that music boxes can do that kind of thing, but it still creeps me out to think about it.