Tag Archives: family

Haunting Shadows

Date_of_performance: 04/04/2025

Informant Name: IS

Language: English 

Nationality: American

Occupation: Student/Grammy U Ambassador 

Primary Language: English

Residence: USC

Interview:

IS: I remember once when I was either a little kid or maybe in middle school I was young that is what I know. I was going to the bathroom super late at night. The bathroom is right across the hallway from my bedroom, so it was a two-second walk.

IS: As I walked to the bathroom, mind you the house is fully dark aside from a few lights here and there so it was hard to see, but I swear I saw a tall, pitch black ghost looking figure move by in the living room. I looked back a millisecond later and didn’t see anyone, even went to the living room to check. It was so weird and I told my mom later that morning curious if she saw something like that before in the house, she told me she didn’t.

ME: Oh my god! That’s crazy! Seeing the tall figure would’ve freaked me out so much. Did you ever see it again after that?

IS: Nope! I thought there was something in the living room that looked like a quickly-moving figure at first, because I was rushing to the bathroom, but there was nothing in the living room that looked like it.

Interpretation

Out of the paranormal folktales that I have collected from my friends, this one is the story that I believe the least is a ghost. She mentioned how she was rushing to the bathroom and it was hard to see because it was dark, so it could be likely that the tall figure she saw was one of her family members grabbing a drink of water or going back to bed, and the figure didn’t say anything because they didn’t see her. The figure didn’t make any noises or approach her, like the spirituals in the other stories did, there was no action the figure did to show they were a ghost or a type of shadowy spirit. If the ghost speak to her in a hushed voice or in a voice that didn’t sound like anyone in her family, I would fully believe she saw a ghost or if they even made something fall down or make a light flicker. She said she didn’t see it again, so the figure wasn’t trying to haunt her or her house, which other ghosts might have done to show that their presence is there. There is also no other spiritual evidence that would back up the figure was a ghost, but she was young when it happened, so there is a possibility that she did forget details that made the figure be a ghost more believable, but in my personal opinion, I don’t see it as a paranormal figure but everyone’s experience with ghosts or spiritual figures is different and not every ghost is different in the way they show up or how they make themselves be seen as.

La llorona

Date_of_performance: 04/05/2025

Informant Name: MD

Language: English/Spanish

Nationality: American

Occupation: Student/RA

Primary Language: English

Residence: USC

Interview:

MD: The only thing i can think of, for legends, La llorona. Which is a hispanic folklore my mom scared me with when I was growing up. You can look it up but my mom would tell me that if I didn’t go to bed on time she would come get me in my sleep.

MD: And i was terrified of her. The pictures online are so triggering to me. *laughs*

ME: Do you remember what she told you about La llorona?

MD: Basically, she told me that she was like an evil mom that would kidnap me if i didn’t listen to her, which is terrifying to hear as a child, so I’m sure you can believe that I started to listening to her more. The whole point was like if you don’t obey your good mom, La llorona will come steal you away from your family. i think she told me that her kids died or something so that’s why she takes other people’s kids.

ME: Oh yeah. I learned a bit about her in my class. It is so interesting and terrifying even now.

MD: Yeah. I don’t think she copied the exact myth, just told me enough to make sure I did listen to her and to scare me away from wanting to misbehavior against her.

Interpretation

I find it so interesting to hear about different legends people have heard of when they were younger and ones that continue to stick with them or influence the way they behave today. It is especially interesting for me when it is a legend that turns into a lesson for children. I had a little bit of knowledge of La llorona before they told me the story of what her mom said to her to frighten her into good behavior. I’m glad I heard it from someone who is Latina or has been haunted by this legend from a young age, there will be a genuine portrayal of who she is and her character wouldn’t be full of harmful Latina stereotypes to make her seem more cruel or dramatic for entertainment effect. The legend focuses on maternal care and I think that is why people tend to force her into such a dark and evil box, because there no talk of the father or consequences for the children is they don’t listen to their dad and a lot of folktales don’t usually focus on a feminine character not being the victim who ends a masculine character to save them, while she is seen as a threatening force because she drowned her children, it is more about wanting children to behave and to stay away from waterways (which is a meaning that tends to be overlooked) and less on how she is a cruel person, which may be painted differently if there is a masculine character starring beside her in the legend. Legends surrounding motherhood are the ones I like to read about the most, because it shows what they would do for their children and how far they would go, even if it means turning against themselves and being represented as someone who is vicious.





Ouija board

Date_of_performance: 04/06/2025

Informant Name: MPF

Language: English/Spanish  

Nationality: Mexican

Occupation: Student/Student worker

Primary Language: English

Residence: USC

Interview:

MPF: The paranormal experience the most, that I would call paranormal experience, is when my dad pulled out a Ouija Board when I was younger.

ME: How old would you say you were when it happened?

MPF: Hm. I was pretty young, maybe around 7 years old. Young enough for it to freak me out a lot at the time.

MPF: One night during the summer, my dad thought it would be fun to bring out the ouji board for us to mess with. He would play around with it when he was young and always said he swore it brought ghosts into his house and I was curious so I agreed to do it with him.

MPF: I don’t remember the exact question he asked it, I think the first question was if someone was in the room with us, the usual question people start out with when talking with spirits *laughs*

ME: What did it respond with? Or did it respond back?

MPF: So at first, it did move to Yes and I started getting scared but then my dad confessed that he moved it there to mess with me. So we tried again and my dad swore he felt a shiver down his back when we asked if someone was there again and it moved to yes. I thought my dad moved it again, but he swore to this day that he didn’t.

ME: What happened after that? Did you continue asking it questions?

MPF: My dad wanted me to ask the next question so I can get the full experience. So i asked if the ghost was friendly.. and it slowly moved to no.

ME: Oh my god.

MPF: Yeah! So I started getting freaked out and crying, my dad decided that we no longer should play with it anymore and took me to bed.

ME: Did you guys say goodbye to it? I remember seeing in films that people say goodbye to close the portal or such.

MPF: I think my dad was too preoccupied getting me to bed and calming me down to say goodbye. But later that night, I swear I felt someone tickle my feet and tugging on my blanket when I was trying to sleep. I don’t know if it was just paranoid in my mind tricking me or if something was there. Let’s just say I will never touch that game again.

ME: Wow! That’s so crazy. Do you know if any other family members mentioned feeling something at night because of the ouji board?

MPF: i think my uncle said saw an old lady walking around at night in his room a couple days later, but that might not be related. My dad did mention to me that he felt that the whole house felt covered in dark energy afterwards, so the house could’ve been haunted but we moved out a couple years later so I have no idea if the ghost is still there haunting the next family. I just know that it spooked me for many years later and I have never and will never pick up a ouija board again.

ME: Did you guys get rid of it?

MPF: Yeah. My mom threw it out when we were moving because she was upset with him for making me cry because of it. So luckily I see no ghost sightings or feelings of dark energy in their new house when I come home and visit.

Interpretation:

Her story reminded me why I haven’t picked up a Ouija board and now I never will. The shiver that her dad felt is such a small detail but so important to the story, it is the point in the story where the ghost could be entering their house and that is why she felt someone tugging on her blanket when she was sleeping. I feel more drawn into this folktale because she didn’t say whether or not she believes it was a ghost, she leaves the ending open and therefore creating suspense and making it more believable because she is sharing an authentic story of a scary moment that happened to her when she was a child. This story is a good example of a classic modern day supernatural folklore memorate, the myth that the Ouji board could invite ghosts into the person’s house and her facing the consequences of trying it out and because her dad did it before when he was younger and had the belief that it worked. It is also interesting that they didn’t close out the ouji board and say goodbye to the ghost, and later her dad felt dark energy and there could’ve been someone in her room that night. That is strong evidence that could led me to think that the Ouji board did work and is a pathway to ghosts or the dead. Saying goodbye to a ghost is a known ritual closure to get rid of the bridge to both sides and according to widely accepted Ouija mythology (and the media) failing to say “goodbye” at the conclusion of a session is dangerous move because it could leave the portal open, which we did end up seeing in this interview and now the ghost feels welcomed to stay. I love how personal this story was, how she felt during the process, a little bit of humor when her dad messed with her and the lead up to the paranormal event. It makes it believable and made me freak out while listening to her talk about it to me.

Nature’s unpredictable… Or is it? 

Nationality: African American

Primary Language: English

Other language(s): French

Age: 65

Occupation: Management Consultant

Residence: Upstate, NY

Performance Date: 4/20/2025

Context: 

My informant, WB, is a family member of mine who lives in the Hudson Valley area of New York. From what I remember, they’ve always been into signs, aspects of nature that may influence decisions, and a lot of times, they’d be spiritual. I asked her one day, especially as I got more into science growing up, if there were any signs they could explain with science that they’d understand growing up that I may have never heard of, and there were. 

Text: 

“A ring around the moon means it’s going to rain. Growing up near farms 60 years ago before the sophistication of modern weather forecasting, we looked for signs in nature to predict weather. This of course could only be a source for prediction if it was a moonlit night. So when it was not a moonlit night, we listened for crickets to indicate a warming or cooling of the weather.  Also, whistling frogs for the coming of spring. Other indicators of bad weather were if your joints ache. This means a lot to me because it connects me to nature and the wonders around us in the natural world. To this date, I listen for crickets and whistling frogs to predict weather conditions. This was all passed down to us generation after generation. And it turns out that there was logic to this:

A ring around the moon: moisture high up in the atmosphere.

Whistling frogs: a warming trend for the coming spring and the frogs thaw. 

Aching joint: barometric pressure changes.

Crickets: hatch in the late summer.”

Analysis:  

This entry is a beautiful example of weather lore. Plus, it’s rooted in a time before people had access to modern meteorological tools. Though in my research, the belief that “a ring around the moon means it’s going to rain,” is actually one of the most widely known pieces of weather folklore, and has some scientific backing: the ring, or lunar halo, forms due to ice crystals in cirrostratus clouds high in the atmosphere, which often precede storm systems. So in that sense, this isn’t just folklore; it’s observational science passed down through generations. I also love how WB connects this tradition to other nature-based signs, like cricket chirps, whistling frogs, to aching joints. From my analysis of such signs, I found that many of these signs actually do correlate with changes in weather or season. For instance, Cleveland Clinic, in their article, “How Changes in Weather Affect Joint Pain,” explains the barometric pressure to joints, and according to the University of Minnesota’s Twin Cities, in their article, “Songs of Spring: A Ribbiting Chorus – Bell Museum,” frogs do indeed become more vocal as temperatures rise, signaling spring. What stands out to me most though is how WB frames all of this as a meaningful connection to nature, especially as our generations start to get lost in the digital age. This entry is fascinating to me because it’s not just about weather predictions, it’s about a whole way of understanding and interacting with the natural world. WB doesn’t just remember these signs nostalgically; WB still uses them, which shows how folklore can remain alive and functional even in a most contemporary context.

There’s a snake in my… Pocket?

Nationality: African American

Primary Language: English

Other language(s): French

Age: 65

Occupation: Management Consultant

Residence: Upstate, NY

Performance Date: 4/20/2025

Context: 

My informant, WB, is a family member of mine who lives in the Hudson Valley area of New York. They used to tell me a lot of riddles as a child, and loved to play games with riddles all the time. One day I decided to ask them if they ever heard of an original riddle that stuck with them personally, one they had not yet shared with me. This is what I got: 

Text: 

“‘What do you get when you put a snake in your pocket? You get bit.’ The meaning of this is to beware of trusting and getting too close to scrupleless people. While I hate that it puts snakes in a bad light, this saying has always taught me to take the time to get to know people who may become a business partners. AND, even then, you may still get bit!! I think this is one that my grandfather created, perhaps it was passed on from an experience his parents had who were in the restaurant business back in the 20’s and finally lost the business to their business partners.  This means a lot to me, it has taught me to pay close attention to the motives of people in general when it comes to finance, positive or negative. I know most people say ‘I trust people until they prove otherwise’ but for me, ‘I don’t trust people I meet until they prove trustworthy.’”

Analysis: 

Okay, so, this proverb they exemplified, I personally had never heard before, and upon looking it up, I found next to nothing, which is great! This might actually be unique to WB’s family (or at least not widespread) adding to the idea that it was coined by their grandfather or adapted from an older phrase. What’s interesting is how it uses the symbol of the snake, which in many global traditions (from the Bible to African trickster tales to Greek mythology) represents deceit, danger, or moral testing. In this case, the snake stands as a metaphor for untrustworthy people, especially in financial or business settings, with the “pocket” standing in as a symbol for closeness or vulnerability. It’s also compelling how the proverb serves not only as a warning, but also as a reflection of a real, generational experience. I think it’s cool that the personal history gives the phrase emotional weight and makes it more than just a casual saying, almost becoming a tool of survival and a form of inherited wisdom. What I find most fascinating is how WB uses it to define their personal philosophy on trust, flipping the more common belief that trust is given until broken. I honestly lean that way too. Plus, WB seems to approach trust as something earned, which they frame not as cynical, but as careful. It’s a great example of how even a small, family-rooted piece of folklore can carry over an entire worldview.