Dybbuk Box

Nationality: American
Age: 67
Occupation: Retired
Residence: United States
Language: English

Text:

“The Dybbuk Box is said to house a malicious spirit. Spirit is said to be trapped in the box until someone helps set it free. Box is said to haunt any person who owns it. Said to cause strange things to happen around it. People who own the box are said to see shadow figures. I learned about it from this show by Zak Bagans, where he was given this box and then some of his workers died upon receiving it or just having bad luck. Said they had nightmares a lot or getting into bad accidents or almost dying.”

Context:

The informant remembers hearing about this from tv shows about the supernatural and interprets it as a story about demons and evil entities. They find it interesting to learn, but also factors in the fear that they feel when getting close to the object.

Analysis:

The Dybbuk Box, in this case, seems to take root from a mix of Jewish culture and American culture. A Dybbuk is from Jewish culture, a wandering spirit that seeks to possess something. The American portion is from the idea of trying to find meaning to that which we can’t explain as well as the fear of the unknown. This also represents an urban legend as its value is spread heavily through media and now takes a more modern approach. The idea also comes from a haunted, or possessed object, that is said to curse those around it. The theme that it could inhibit is to be mindful of one’s surroundings and of what you mess around with as something terrible might happen if you’re not careful. This also holds magical properties through contagious magic as whoever owns it is passed down a curse even after being separated. The opening of the box symbolizes a taboo, or a warning, and prohibiting the action or else misfortune will ensue.

La Llorona

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: United States
Language: English

Text:

“So one story that I’ve heard growing up a lot in my life is the legend of La Llorona. I first heard it as a very young child probably 5 or 6 years old. My parents, grandma and tias would tell me about her. It’s a story where a young woman had two children a little boy and little girl. She lived in a small town in Mexico- her name Maria. She was very gorgeous a town treasure and had a loving personality. She was a stay at home mom who worked really hard. She had a husband who was a soldier and he would come visit her when he wasn’t out working but one day she caught him cheating on her with another woman. This made her grow furious and jealous and out of pure disgust towards her husband she ended up taking her young children to the river and drowned them. After killing them she realized what she did and immediately got so heartbroken trying to resurrect them. After failed attempts she drowned herself hoping to be with her kids in heaven. However when she died God didn’t let her in. Because of what she did she was forced to wander the earth in search of her children’s souls and only then will she be let in. Little did she know her children’s souls were already in heaven. So she’s now doomed to walk the Earth grounds. She wanders around rivers and lakes late in the night. She screamed/cries out “Ohhh mis hijos!!” (Oh, my children) And when you hear her cry late at night you’re already doommed cause she’s nearby even if she seems further away. It’s said if she is to find you she will become enraged realizing you’re not her kids and drown you in the closest body of water. She’s genuinely search a cursed spirit filled with much despair, grief and anger. She’s known to appear with long dark hair and a dirty white long dress.”

Context:

The informant says that even though they personally don’t believe in it, they’ve heard stories of family members encountering it, making it somewhat believable. They find it fascinating and tragic and finds it to be a story that they would pass down to others, especially having grown up with it themselves.

Analysis:

This narrative represents a legend as it occurs in the real world with some possible truth to it. It represents a story of injustice, jealousy, and grief, causing this pain to be continuously passed down to other people. It suggests the theme of being careful when you go out at night or else something bad might happen to you, which is also probably why it is told to young children as to warn against them from going out to unsafe places. La Llorona represents a revenant, a spirit brought back from the dead for revenge, or as spirit with unfinished business. The story also represents a religious concentration as the reason why she cannot move on is because of God not letting her into heaven due to the consequence of suicide. This focuses on the idea of motherhood due to the guilt she feels for murdering her kids in rage and dealing with infidelity from her husband, showing an importance for family and social connections in society.

Driving Green Ghost?!

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Boston, Massachusetts
Language: English

1. TEXT/TRANSCRIPTION

“So this is something my mom has always told me about, and she swears it really happened. She was really little, like, before she could even talk, and she was outside of her house in Massachusetts. And she says she saw a car drive by, and in the window, there was this ghost, just waving at her.

But the weirdest part? The ghost was green. Not just see-through or white or whatever, like the usual kind. It was glowing green, and she still remembers it so clearly. She always says it wasn’t a dream or anything, like, she genuinely believes it happened, and she’s told the story the same way my whole life. Every time she tells it, it’s like, dead serious.”

2. CONTEXT

“I honestly don’t know where she first told it, I think it just came up when I was a kid and we were talking about scary stuff or something. She’s told it more than once, but it’s always been the same. Like, no changes or anything.

It’s just one of those things she experienced and never forgot. And yeah, she couldn’t even talk yet, but she still remembers seeing that ghost in the car. I guess it just stuck with her. It’s kind of become one of those family stories, like weird, but kind of cool too.”

3. INTERPRETATION (my own analysis)

What I found most fascinating about this story was how vividly her mom remembered something from before she could even speak. It made me think about how certain moments, especially ones that feel emotionally or spiritually intense, can stick in our memory in a way that defies logic or age.

Even though this could just be written off as a childhood imagination or dream, her mom’s consistency and conviction over time gives it more weight. There’s also something symbolic about the ghost being green, unusual for ghost stories, which usually describe white or shadowy figures. The green glow adds a feeling of mystery or even peace, like the ghost wasn’t trying to scare her, just to be seen. The fact that it waved reinforces that feeling. It wasn’t aggressive or malevolent, it was a gesture of recognition or even friendliness.

I also think this story is a good example of how family folklore forms. It’s not something you’d read in a book, it’s personal and lived, passed down from a mother to a daughter. Stories like this build emotional bonds in families and become part of how people understand their own histories. Whether or not it’s “true” doesn’t really matter. What matters is that it meant something to her mom, and now, through the act of storytelling, it means something to AM (the initials of storyteller), and even to me as the listener.

The Ghost of Doheny Library

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Cupertino, California
Language: English

1. TEXT TRANSCRIPTION

“So at the Catalina retreat, I got the chance to meet with one of my professors while I was there. And during our conversation, he brought up something kind of spooky, he said that Doheny is haunted. Apparently, there’s this whole story behind it. He told me that the original founders of Doheny, the husband and wife, both died under somewhat mysterious or unclear circumstances. And ever since then, there have been rumors that their ghosts still linger around the campus. He said people have reported strange occurrences, like unexplained noises, shadows, or that eerie feeling like someone’s watching you. It was just a casual story he shared, but it definitely gave off some haunted mansion vibes. I’m not sure how much of it is just legend or if people have actually experienced things, but it was still super interesting and kind of creepy to hear while being away at the retreat.”

2. CONTEXT

“The story was told to me by one of my professors during a school-sponsored retreat on Catalina Island. The setting was casual and conversational, we weren’t in a classroom, which made the story feel more intimate and less academic. The professor shared the haunted Doheny story in a lighthearted, somewhat joking way, but he didn’t deny its possibility either. This made me feel like it was something known within the university community, possibly passed down among faculty or students over the years.

As someone relatively new to the school, I hadn’t heard the story before, so it sparked my curiosity, not just about the haunting itself but also about the history of the Doheny building and its founders. While I took it with a grain of salt, the idea that our campus could have ghost stories gave it a sense of mystery and history I hadn’t thought about before.”

3. INTERPRETATION

Although the text may seem like just a spooky anecdote, it reveals several cultural and personal values. Culturally, it reflects the common human tendency to mythologize historic spaces, especially when the lives (or deaths) of those involved are unclear or mysterious. The haunting becomes a symbolic way to express unresolved history. In this case, the ghosts of the Doheny founders represent more than just fear, they symbolize the past still lingering within the present, a connection between generations at the university.

The story also speaks to the role of oral tradition in academic spaces. Even in an environment focused on logic and evidence, folklore finds a place, passed informally between faculty and students. This reflects a cultural value of storytelling as a means of building identity and community within institutions. Hearing this at a retreat, away from the usual routines of school, also made the experience feel more liminal, a space where the boundary between fact and legend feels blurred.

On a personal level, the story made me feel more connected to the school. Whether or not it’s true, it gave me a new perspective on the campus and how spaces can carry emotional and symbolic meaning. It reminded me that universities aren’t just about academics, they’re also about shared stories, mysteries, and the ways people relate to the spaces they move through every day.

Haunted Freshman Dorm

Nationality: American
Age: 19
Occupation: Student
Residence: Cupertino, California

1. TEXT/TRANSCRIPTION

“So this happened to my sister when she was a freshman in college. She told me that she always felt really uneasy in her dorm room. Like, every night she would get this weird feeling, like someone was watching her. Not just sometimes, but every night. She didn’t see anything at first, but she said it was hard to sleep, and she couldn’t shake that heavy, creepy feeling.

Then one night, she was lying in bed and felt the same thing, so she looked out the window. And she swears she saw someone staring back at her. But the wild part is, she lived on the seventh floor. There was no balcony, no ledge, nothing. Just this figure, staring right at her from outside the window.

She obviously freaked out. And later on, she found out that someone had died on her floor years before she moved in. After that, everything made a little more sense to her, but it was still super disturbing. She doesn’t really like to talk about it much.”

2. CONTEXT

“She told me this after she moved out of that dorm. I think she didn’t want to scare anyone while she was still living there, but after she left, she opened up about it. It’s not something she jokes about either, like, she really believes what she saw.

It’s one of those stories that our family always talks about now, but not in a ‘haha, spooky’ way. More like, ‘Wow, that actually happened to her.’ She’s still kind of uncomfortable when she remembers it. It definitely stuck with her.”

3. INTERPRETATION

This story gave me chills when I first heard it, not just because of the creepy image of someone staring into a 7th-floor window, but because of how real it felt to the person telling it. The emotional weight and fear in her sister’s experience really stood out to me. It reminded me that ghost stories aren’t always about what’s visible, sometimes it’s about the atmosphere, the tension, the feeling that something isn’t right.

There’s something deeply personal and psychological about the idea of being watched while you sleep. That sense of vulnerability, especially in a space that’s supposed to feel safe, like your dorm room, heightens the impact of the story. When she finally sees something, it becomes a visual confirmation of what she’s felt all along. That moment turns her unease into fear, but also into belief.

What makes the story even more meaningful is the historical layer, that someone had died on that floor years earlier. It connects her personal experience to a larger, possibly hidden history of the building. It also speaks to how haunted places aren’t just abandoned mansions or creepy woods, they can be everyday, lived-in spaces like college dorms. Places where young people are supposed to feel free and excited are suddenly connected to past trauma, making them feel unfamiliar and unsafe.

To me, this story reflects how personal folklore can develop in intimate spaces. It also shows how fear, especially when validated by later discoveries, can reshape how someone understands their own memories. Whether or not there was really someone at the window, the belief in that moment, the fear, the isolation, the later context of death, gives the story emotional and cultural power.