Category Archives: Signs

Prognostications, fortune-telling, etc.

Viking at the Cabin

Nationality: American

Age: 19

Occupation: Retail

Residence: Belton, MO

Performance Date: November 29, 2024

Primary Language: English

Language: English

MAIN DESCRIPTION

Q: “So, you’ve mentioned before you grew up with spirits. What’s one you remember that stands out from the rest?”

A: “Well, um, I grew up on an old abandoned farm that was built over. And it was a log cabin. And there was lots of spirits there, but I remember once in particular I was getting ready for bed and my mom wasn’t home yet. So, I was by myself in my room. It was dark and I heard a creak in the hallway because our floors are really creaky, and I thought that, y’know, maybe she was getting home or something. And the door opened and I saw her shadow. And I was like okay, I don’t know why you’re not turning on the light, so, you’re gonna trip and fall. But, she didn’t. Um, she, what I thought was her, um, she came over to me, and like her form, the outline of her body, turned from what she looked like into like this Viking, big scary dude with like a huge axe. And he like, swang it at me, and I remember hiding under my covers, and I remember hearing all the noises like it was real.  And then, I got up out of my bed and asked my brother to wake up because I was scared, and there was nobody there. So, there’s that.”

INFORMANT’S OPINION

Q: “Do you think it was a ghost or something else?”

A: “There were a ton of spirits in that house. I encountered them, um, pretty regularly. They weren’t always so scary. I guess I could’ve been dreaming.”

PERSONAL INTERPRETATION

It was hard to analyze the informant for any cultural significance relating to Vikings. She was not of a descent remotely similar to the origins of Nordic heritage. What stands out to me is the idea that the Viking was, at first, her mother. The fact that her mother seemed gentle at first and then became violent struck a chord with me. Perhaps there is a personal projection of abuse or neglect. A spirit could symbolize this, or even be a warning of some sort. Going further than this would be irresponsible and hypothetical, but I do believe that the detail of the mother is where the heart of this story, in some form or another, lies. I believe there is substance here for this occurrence being only a dream, but it interests me in the sense that it’s quite hard to tell from her description. Why could she hear sounds so vividly? Why can she not tell whether or not this was a dream? I believe this liminal area between being asleep and awake screams of a memorate. She mentioned other spirits as well. I could see the possibility that this was just a wandering spirit as well.

The Ghost of a Suffragette

Age: 55

Date of Interview: 12/03/24

Date of Story: 07/2000

Informant Name: DP

Language: English

Collector’s name: LP

Nationality: USA

Occupation: IT enginneer

Primary Language: English

Residence at the time: Washington DC

Current Residence: Pennsylvania

It was dark night in July 2000 after the museum closed.   The museum was silent and dark.   We could only hear the wind outside the windows.  The stairs creaked as we walked up the stairs.  We went from room to room, checking the exhibits.  The moonlight shown through the windows as we walked.  I heard a noise on the far side of the building, in the room opposite of the room I was in.  It sounded like a clatter.  Someone had tripped.  I went towards the noise, and found nothing was there except an overturned chair.   I picked up the chair, and started to walk away and cross the hall, when in my peripheral vision I saw light.  I turned around and saw it.  A woman in what seemed to be late 19th century bed clothes, glowing and walking across the room towards me.  I stood and stared and was about to call out, and the woman ran past me and into the and wall and disappeared.

Ghost story in the woods- JH

Age: 18

Date of interview: 12/01/24

Informant Name: JH

Language: English

Collector’s name: LP

Nationality: USA

Occupation: College Student

Primary Language: English

Residence: Appalachia in Pennsylvania

The cold October rain trickled down my neck, causing me to shiver. But I don’t feel cold, not really. I’m angry. I’m angry and sitting down to talk about it makes it worse. I’m angry and I need this time alone. The cold 40-degree downpour was necessary to clear my mind. The edge of the woods seems the best place to get this alone time. I had to have been not in my right mind. I never would have been here if I was. I heard the screams and felt the terror those brought me. I felt the fear choke me up when the screams would move down the valley far, far too fast to be anything real. I saw the way those screams caused my father to halt in his tracks while we were out late. I heard his voice tremble with fear as he refused to recount his encounter with the Screaming Thing to me.
But that wasn’t on my mind right now, it was only the annoyance of the argument I had just had that pulled me down that hill to stand at the edge of the trees. The raindrops hit and ricochetted off of the water of the pond in front of me. They cracked down on my scalp. They slammed into the blades of grass and leaves surrounding me, making it hard to hear anything.
But still, I heard it. Faint, down the valley, barely a threat. I wasn’t scared, I was still angry. And I had no reason to be afraid, clearly. The screams remained at the end of the valley as I stood my silent ground against the world. A minute passed, then two, then three. Nothing was happening, and nothing would happen, I knew.
Until I took a step. A light shuffle. My legs were growing numb from the rain and standing locked in the same position. Nothing. The screaming stopped for a second, then sounded again—much, much closer. My skin began to crawl, those minute of ignoring the rain trailing down my spine catching up to me. I shiver violently. I feel my breathing go faster, and my heart is speeding up too. I take another step, and another, and another. It’s a walk for the first 4 steps, but the thing is halving the distance every step I take. I trip, stumbling up the hill I walked down to get here. It’s so close. I stand up and sprint. It’s on me now, and the darkness it brings presses on the edges of my vision, becoming more centered until I can’t see. I keep running, but It’s there. Infinitely loud, my heart is beating out of my chest. I keep running, hoping I don’t run into anything. It’s so loud, so loud…
Then nothing. The screaming stops, and the darkness lifts off my vision. I hit the ground for the second time. I’ve fallen just inside of the floodlight spilling from the garage. It’s stopped and I’m safe. Shaking and scared out of my mind, but safe.

A Ghost Friend in the New House

Nationality: American
Age: 51
Occupation: Investment Company Employee
Residence: Blue Bell, Pennsylvania
Performance Date: November 28, 2024
Primary Language: English

CONTEXT:

The informant, my aunt, has one daughter and she and my uncle raised her in the same house for years. Their daughter became close with the neighbors and their daughter who was about five years younger than her. The couple next door also had a little boy a few years later. Eventually, the neighbors and their two kids decided to move, and the various ghost encounters occurred at their new house. The parents stayed in touch and told the informant all about the creepy events that were occurring. The informant provided me with the details of the story and I recorded it.

STORY:

“When the two of them moved out with both of the kids, some of the first things we heard from them afterward were about how they think the new house is haunted. Creepy things started to happen in the backyard, and the kids both started mentioning stuff about a woman. After looking into it more, they discovered that a previous owner had committed suicide in the house. The pieces started to make sense and creep them out even more.”

“…There were so many different instances where the mom noticed the ghost or something about it. First, the kids would act strange when they were outside playing in the yard. The two of them would tell her that they were talking to ‘the woman’ and it confused her. She was concerned, but it wasn’t anything conclusive yet. Then, she would notice the swings or other things in the yard moving with nobody there, and their dog would just sit and stare or bark occasionally. She started to conclude that the house must be haunted.”

“After she kept noticing little things, the kids would again tell her that they were talking to ‘the woman.” Their mom remained freaked out about the ghost of the woman who was most likely roaming around outside. I’m not exactly sure what else happened after that, if they ever saw the ghost directly, or if anything else came of it. It must have been a harmless ghost who was finding ways to stay in the house.”

INFORMANT’S OPINION:

“The new house was definitely haunted. The previous owner committed suicide and was most likely haunting the house. Since the kids were still pretty young at the time, it’s also possible that the ghost was making herself known to them and even communicating with them. It was so interesting to hear about from the mom after they moved. She always joked about us coming over and seeing the ghost.”

PERSONAL TAKEAWAY:

This is a very straightforward ghost story that was very interesting to hear about since it was so connected to me personally. It embodies so many traditional motifs of ghosts. The haunted house is a classic and is one of the most common instances of ghost sightings or supernatural experiences. The ghost connecting with the children and alarming the dog is also common and makes the story a lot more eerie. It may just be a case of overthinking or disorientation due to them having just moved, but I think all of this coming together and knowing the previous owner died tragically, there has to be some supernatural elements present. I wonder if anything else happened or if the ghost is still there today!

Taiwanese story: Hou Yi and the 10 Suns

Nationality: Taiwanese
Age: 76
Occupation: Retired, former teacher
Residence: Taipei, Taiwan
Performance Date: 24 March 2024
Language: Taiwanese/Mandarin

Tags: hou yi, taiwan, suns, origin, tradition, archer

Text:

Once upon a time, there were 10 suns in the sky. One day, they decided to all come out at the same time. The land was scorching and the people were on the brink of death from the heat, so they asked a legendary warrior, Hou Yi, to go and do something about the suns. Hou Yi was a great warrior and archer, but even he saw the difficulty of shooting down 10 celestial entities. He pondered upon how to deal with the suns for some time, and one day, Hou Yi looked down and saw a puddle of water reflecting the 10 suns. Hou Yi then shot arrows at the reflections of 9 suns inside the puddle, causing the real 9 suns in the sky to disappear, leaving only 1 sun so that humanity wouldn’t have an endless night. Thus, that is how and why there is 1 sun in the sky today.

Context:

C. is a born and raised Taiwanese citizen, and has told her fair share of stories to her children and grandchildren alike. This story is one of the most famous and commonly known stories in Taiwan and most other East Asian countries, and C. was even surprised when I asked her to tell it again for this class since she knew I had heard it multiple times.

Analysis:

Being one of the oldest stories in Chinese (and thus Asian) folklore, there are a myriad of different details and versions of the story that contest the sequence of events. Some versions include the Jade Emperor being the one to appoint Hou Yi, others include the rooster as the reason the last sun comes back up, and a plethora of other changes/additions. Overall, this is a good example of a common story with various differences being made by various different storytellers over time.