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- [00:06]
Host / Narrator
There he snuck round the mulberry bush pretending to be gleeful. He wondered if he was a good boy. Nope.
- [00:17]
Malachi
He was evil.
- [00:24]
Host / Narrator
You've crossed over the spooked. Stay tuned. You're listening to this podcast, so I know you've got a curious mind. Here's a helpful fact you might not know yet. Drivers who switch and save with Progressive save over $900 on average. Pop over to progressive.com answer some questions and you'll get a quick quote with discounts that are easy to come by. In fact, 99% of their auto customers earn at least one discount. Visit progressive.com and see if you can enjoy a little cash back Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates national average 12 month savings of $946 by new customers surveyed who saved for Progressive between June 2024 and May 2025.
- [01:09]
Oregon Lottery Announcer
Potential savings will vary Oregon Parks make an Oregon Summer. But what makes an Oregon park? Well, Oregon Lottery Gameplay helps no matter the game megabucks, video lottery or keno funds from lottery games helps support parks projects across the state, ensuring they stay safe, accessible and open for all. In fact, Discover State Park' chits are in stores now. It's the perfect way to put a little bit of Oregon's parks in your pocket. The Oregon Lottery Together we do good things. Must be 18 or older to play. Lottery games are based on chance and should be played for entertainment only.
- [01:42]
Applebee's Advertiser
For those crazy busy, crazy hungry days when cooking family dinner is off the table, there's Applebee's all you can eat, a table full of unlimited favorites for just $15.99. You get all the tender signature riblets, all the crispy boneless wings, all the golden brown double crunched shrimp and endless classic fries at a family friendly Applebee's. All you can eat for just $15.99 per person per order. Now that's eaten good in the neighborhood. Limited time only, so hurry into your
- [02:11]
Thumbtack Advertiser
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- [02:32]
Rakuten Advertiser
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- [03:47]
Host / Narrator
Okay Ever since I can remember, I've been black, right? And like most black Americans, there's other stuff mixed in. Aunties say we've got Native American roots on both sides. Blackfoot from my father's, Chippewa from my mama's. I don't know anything about that. But back when I'm in college in Ann Arbor, I hear they're about to have the biggest Native American powwow in the country. And I figure, why not? So the next morning, my girlfriend and I fumble around in the dark, trying not to wake up my roommate and whoever else is laid out in the living room. My roommate is from Ohio. This will come up later. I grab a shirt, jeans, a sweatshirt, and we're out. Get to the enormous Chrysler arena and it is incredible. Storytellers, music, food. This sea of smiles. Thousands of people that all seem to know each other. The brightest lights are dancing competitions between various groups and families and tribes. Dozens of dancers rocking colors and feathers and bells. And they dance. Whoa. They dance. Choreographed, rhythmic, hypnotic, powered by teams of drummers. Beautiful, athletic, intimidating. I watch and not. I don't feel like I'm going home or something. It feels he was like the opposite of that. I don't know anything and I don't want to mess it up. Every so often, the announcer, this og gray hair braided back in two braids, takes the mic and everyone it's time for the all dance. The pros are out of the way. The grandmothers and teenagers and babies and students and old men take the floor. People dance together in rhythm and community. It's hypnotic, it's glorious, and I feel it. But I stay where I think I belong, right at the edge of the action. Watching. Watching the announcer puts down his microphone, motions to me, says hey, you wanna dance? Go on, dance. So I go over to the floor, start trying to fall into rhythm behind the hundreds of people next to me. And one thing about my family is we can dance. And I'm getting it, and I'm getting it. I'm dancing. Old ladies smile, young dudes laugh. Yeah, I'm doing it up. It's physical. Start to get hot. I got this. Take off my sweatshirt, tie it around my waist, it flaps behind me like a tail. I look toward the side and see my girlfriend flying frantically. Waved me over, trying to get me off the floor. And I'm like, nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah nah Darling, can't you see I'm feeling it? She runs over, waved me off the dance floor. Who died?
- [06:52]
Thumbtack Advertiser
What?
- [06:55]
Host / Narrator
She points at my shirt. I look down and time stops. Cause I'm blazing on my chest. It is horrible. Bug eyed, buck tooth grinning, bright red racist caricature of Native Americans. The old Cleveland Indians baseball team chief Wahoo in the middle of a several thousand person powwow. It's like pulling on a Klan hood at a black church barbecue. And this isn't even my shirt. I'm Detroit Tigers, but my roommate is from Ohio. Somehow in the dark, trying not to wake anybody up, I must have grabbed his stuff. And it's like I've summoned darkness. Every single person in the entire arena turns around in slow motion to point at me, to stare. Thousand pairs of angry eyes. At least that's what it feels like. Me scrambling to pull my hoodie up. I run off the dance floor, lickety split toward the exit. The announcer, he sees me. He's seen the whole sorry display. And he's like no, no no, no, no, no. This dance is not over. I'm scared to look around and see once friendly faces filled with hate. But when I lift my eyes, there's surprise, surprise. This story, like most stories, isn't about me. Everyone's just trying to get it to the rhythm of the drum. Trying to show each other love. So I try to dance, to dance, to move my feet. Stomping, stepping, stomping, stepping. Trying to dance over it, through it, to bury it, to bury it. That grinning thing burning on my chest. That old American demon still smiling. Sa. Now Malachi and his husband Jeremiah, they have a very special plan for this weekend. They're heading deep into the woods of Oklahoma for one of the most important stomp dances of the year. The green corn ceremony. You see, Jeremiah is Cherokee by blood. And that makes this dance deeply personal. But for Jeremiah's husband, Malachi, it's a first. Spooked,
- [10:30]
Malachi
We get into the car, we start driving past the city of Tulsa, start taking some back roads. I suddenly start to see tall grass surrounding us as we're driving. I don't see any buildings. Oh my gosh, where am I going? Where is this man taking me?
- [10:57]
Jeremiah
This is the first time my husband and I are both going to the ceremonial grounds. But I have been going there since I was able to breathe outside of the womb. This was the last stomp dance of the year. They call it the Green corn ceremony. They've gotten all of the stuff harvested. There's going to be like a feast and everything. It's kind of like going to church. You're going home and you're there to worship together. Essentially. This is just an exciting thing in my head.
- [11:32]
Malachi
I'm currently trying to just calm my heart because it's racing. I just don't know why I'm so anxious. First of all, there's going to be a lot of people that I never met before. And then I'm a gay dude and I don't know how they would react being around gay people. Also, I'm quite embarrassed because I have Cherokee Native American blood in me, but I hardly know anything about my own tribe. And so when he told me about the stomp dance, I was like, okay, well, I need to learn about those traditions.
- [12:34]
Oregon Lottery Announcer
Oregon parks make an Oregon summer. But what makes an Oregon park? Well, Oregon Lottery Gameplay helps no matter the game. Megabucks, video lottery or keno funds from lottery games help support parks projects across the state, ensuring they stay safe, safe, accessible and open for all. In fact, Discover State park scratches are in stores now. It's the perfect way to put a little bit of Oregon's parks in your pocket. The Oregon Lottery. Together we do good things. Must be 18 or older to play. Lottery games are based on chance and should be played for entertainment only.
- [13:03]
Applebee's Advertiser
For those crazy busy, crazy hungry days when cooking family dinner is off the table, there's Applebee's all you can eat. A table full of unlimited favorites for just $15.99. You get all the tender signature riblets, all the crispy boneless wings, all the golden brown double crunch shrimp and endless classic fries at a family friendly price. Applebee's all you can eat for just $15.99 per person per order. Now that's eatin good in the neighborhood. Limited time only, so hurry into your nearest Applebee's today.
- [13:35]
Livy Dunn
I'm Livy Dunn, All American gymnast and Viori athlete. When you travel and train as much as I do, you find happiness where you are on the mat or on the sand. Movement and comfort are essential. That's why I live in performance. Joggers by Viori made from Dream Net fabric that's made of 89% recycled materials, effortlessly soft and made to move as much as I do. My happiness starts here in the softest joggers on The Planet Get 20% off your first purchase at Biore.com Libby that's V U-O-R-I.com L I V-V-Y exclusions apply. Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but enjoy free shipping on US orders over $75 and free returns. Go to Vuori.com Libby and discover the full Versat utility of Biore clothing. Exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
- [14:30]
Rakuten Advertiser
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- [15:29]
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- [17:09]
Jeremiah
After about an hour and a half, we're literally out in the middle of
- [17:12]
Malachi
nowhere and we enter into this clearing. I see tents, just camping tents, camping trailers, kids playing, some adults just sitting in their lawn chairs, talking, drinking coffee. We parked right next to his auntie's camp ground setup. I step out of the car. Jeremiah comes around the car and he takes me to meet his auntie. She gives me a hug. She says, hi, Malachi, Welcome. There was chairs and tables. There was a kitchen. Without anybody asking me, I just start tidying up the place. I don't know, I start kind of setting the table, putting napkins and forks and stuff. I feel a tap on my shoulder and it's Jeremiah. And he's laughing at me. He's like, okay, babe, I know you just like want to help and be helpful, but the men have to go outside. You need to leave. I'm like, oh, okay, got it.
- [18:28]
Jeremiah
So we're outside. There's two of the other guys that have been chosen for the day's dance. I introduce them to my husband.
- [18:39]
Malachi
I start feeling very nervous because I don't know any of them. Eventually there was 50, 60 people standing outside, socializing very, very quietly with each other. They're wearing these ceremonial ribbon shirts. It's a short sleeve button up shirt. And then on the back of their shirts, there's colorful ribbons lining across their shoulders. There's silk, pink silk, red silk, blue ribbons. And it was just beautiful. All of a sudden, we get called in to dinner. I sit down at this very, very long picnic table. The table was covered in food. There were bowls of vegetables, chunks of cooked meat, almost like a roast. It had the most wonderful flavor I had ever had before. After probably an hour, the sun finally goes down. We get to the ceremonial stomp dance ground. There's probably a hundred people there of men and women and children sitting on these benches in a circle. The men were wearing their ribbon shirts. The women had these beautiful shirts, shaws over their shoulders. I started going towards where they were sitting and I Was stopped. Jeremiah said, no, no, no, no, no, no.
- [20:29]
Jeremiah
You can't sit there. That's not for us to sit.
- [20:32]
Malachi
They get to sit there. We get to sit behind them. I said, oh.
- [20:39]
Jeremiah
And so we sat in these lawn chairs behind this gentleman, which is the chief. The men and the women who got chosen for the day's dance take their seat next to the chief. They're sitting in front of us, and
- [20:54]
Malachi
everything just goes quiet. A fire starts to be built in the middle of the circle. I can see the fire getting bigger and bigger and bigger and almost like 10ft tall.
- [21:16]
Jeremiah
The chief stands up. The fire is blazing right in front of him.
- [21:22]
Malachi
One man starts chanting, mielako and mielako, come on out, come on out. This woman stands up. She started tapping her way over to the fire. The women followed. Then the men stand up. There's one person singing.
- [21:56]
Host / Narrator
You.
- [22:08]
Malachi
People start tapping their feet and they start moving around the fire. Jeremiah said, they'll do five of these prayers and then they'll allow everybody else to come in. He said, okay. As they're doing the first initial. Thanks and prayers and chants, I can feel the warmth and the heat of the fire even from where we were sitting. And all of a sudden, I don't know what happens, But I could not keep my eyes off the fire. The fire was so hypnotizing. And then I suddenly start to see different shapes and figures in the flickers of the flames. I could see. See what looked like animals kind of moving around. The more I focused in, the more vivid these figures were in the fire. I could see chickens, cattle, deer. They were just black silhouettes dancing and moving about the flames. I was just second guessing myself. Like, are you really seeing what you think you're seeing, Malachi? Like, I don't know. But then I see people moving in that fire. And I could see them plain as day. They were shadows, they were silhouettes, but I could tell they were men and women. I was scared at first, seeing these figures in the fire. But then I realized, like, you know, this is beautiful. I'm just so hypnotized, and I do not want this moment to end. I don't want to break focus. All of a sudden, everything just went quiet. I kind of jolt or wake up or whatever you call it. And next thing I know, everyone is sitting back down around the fire. Jeremiah said, that was just the introduction. Now we'll sit here, and then when the time comes, we'll be called and we can enter in and join in the dance
- [25:17]
Jeremiah
after the main dances are Done. One of the men stands up and Mielako. And Mielako. At that point, everybody's welcome. My two aunts, my great aunt. Everybody just kind of stands up, and then we're all able to go.
- [25:40]
Malachi
Jeremiah was leaning over to me saying, if you want to come in and join, you can. But I. I said, you know what? Not hang on. I just want to observe a little bit more. I just want to make sure I know what I'm doing before I jump in. So Jeremiah stands up and joins the dance. I was sitting behind. I was trying to get back into the fire and try to see those figures again. But as I was just trying to
- [26:18]
Rakuten Advertiser
focus,
- [26:20]
Malachi
something caught my eye. I looked just off to the corner, and on the right side of the stump ground was this man. He was by himself kind of back in the trees in the shadows. He's very tall, and he has a spear in his hand that was wooden with feathers at the top, very. His face is rugged and sharp. He's very muscular, and he's just standing there. But I. I was pretty frightened because he's staring just straight at me with such intensity. His eyes were so piercing, yellowish gold. And I hear him say, what is your purpose for being here? I really felt terrified. I cannot hear his voice vocally. It's in my mind. It just made me shudder. It made me have this instant respect. And when that happened, everything just goes silent. The chanting ends. I break focus from him. And I was just kind of like, did I really just experience that?
- [28:23]
Land Rover Defender Advertiser
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- [29:17]
Livy Dunn
Livy Dunn, all American gymnast and Vuori athlete. When you travel and train as much as I do, you find happiness where you are on the mat or on the sand movement and comfort are essential. That's why I live in performance. Joggers by Vuori. Made from Dream knit fabric that's made of 89% recycled materials, effortlessly soft and made to move as much as I do. My happiness starts here in the softest joggers on the planet. Get 20% off your first purchase at vuori.com libby that's V-U-O-R-I.com L I V-V-Y exclusions apply. Not only will you receive 20% off your first purchase, but enjoy free shipping on US orders over $75 and free returns. Go to viori.com libby and discover the full versatility of Viori. Clothing exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions.
- [30:06]
Rakuten Advertiser
Rakuten opens up a world of rewards. You can earn cash back on fashion, beauty, electronics, pet supplies, kid stuff, groceries. But what I'm here to tell you is with Rakuten, you get cash back on travel, too. Join and save on your next trip. You'll get cash back on the flight, the hotel and the car rental. Book on your favorite travel sites like Expedia, booking.com, viator, vrbohotels.com, iHG and more. Save on cruises, vacation packages and experiences as well. And don't worry, cash back can be earned on top of your credit card points and with many loyalty programs because we know you're saving every way you can. So go ahead, take a trip. Find that perfect hotel. Book an artisan cheese experience inside a cave in Spain. Wherever you want to go, go with Rakuten. Join today for free. Go to rakuten.com or get the app that's R a K u T E N.
- [31:18]
Jeremiah
We were walking back over to the lawn chairs where Malachi was. Malachi just seemed like something wasn't sitting right with him, but I could tell that he was experiencing what was behind the veil. You know, seeing. Seeing things or experiencing things. I looked over at him and I was like, hey, it's. It's. It's time to go. Like, come on, let's. Let's go dance together.
- [31:45]
Malachi
I'm like, okay. I guess I. I trusted him. I got up, I followed him, and I get into through the stomp ground. I see an opening. I kind of put myself in. I couldn't think or focus on anything but the chanting and the deafening sound of the shell shakers. I just start kind of moving my feet and doing the best I can. It was almost like the music was speaking to me. Left, right, go. Breathe Next thing I know, I'm. I'm stomp dancing in unison with everybody else. I had goosebumps. Just this feeling of euphoria. Like I feel like I'm kind of flying. And it was so spiritual. I felt connected to the people around me, to the music, to the fire. I was just a part of that. After that first dance, I go and sit down in the chair and I was like, that was amazing. I don't know where Jeremiah goes at this point, but it's just me sitting in the chair and I'm just kind of watching what's happening around me. All of a sudden, something big just kind of brushes past me. My chair even kind of moved a little bit. And I see very quickly it was this smoky figure of a black four legged dog or something. And it was big, it was massive. It jumped over the log in front of me and then kind of glided into the fire. I just saw these sparks and these embers just kind of whoa. I'm like, what the hell? Jeremiah came back from wherever he was. And I said, black figure, four legs jumped into the fire. And he's like, yeah, that's a wolf.
- [34:46]
Jeremiah
I was walking back to the chair at that time and I saw like a shadow kind of go over into the fire. And I literally looked at him like, you saw my totem, which is the wolf.
- [35:02]
Malachi
I was like a wolf. Are you serious? He said, yes. When we come and gather in moments like this, our spirits will come and join. They're here. We're not alone. It was about 3:30 in the morning. I was getting so tired. Jeremiah said like, hey, you want to start heading back? The dance still continues until sunrise. And I said, might be time to call it a night. We gave our thanks and we started walking back towards where a car was. Jeremiah, he had gone to get our supplies and stuff that we brought to bring it back to the car. I was just kind of standing there on my own. And that's when I started to feel that tingle in my body. Something is here and I'm not alone. I look out to the corner of my eye, there he was again, the same man from earlier in the night, staring right at me. He's probably a good 20ft away from me, kind of by some trees. My heart starts racing again. I start breathing heavy, like I don't want to look at him, but I'm looking at him. And again our eyes connect. This time he was more relaxed and he had more of like a friendly kind of a gaze. And I could sense approval in his face. I was able to just relax, take a deep breath, and I just started feeling good. I don't know how long exactly it was, but eventually I hear behind me, all right, let's go. You ready? I got the keys. As we were driving, Jeremiah, he kind of broke the ice. He was just like, babe, I'm really glad that you got to go there with me. I've wanted you to do that since we got married.
- [37:51]
Jeremiah
When all of us are together, our tribe is together, I feel like the veil is lifted. There is something else that's out there. There's something that's happening all around us at all times. And for him to have experienced that and to see the wolf brushing past him, seeing that person, whether that be like a protector of the land or somebody from the family from way back, for me personally, I think it really solidified that he's accepted, you are meant to be my life partner.
- [38:29]
Malachi
I might cry. That was the full circle moment for me. I no longer would just be a bystander. And he said, now you've met the whole family. And I was like, ah.
- [39:00]
Host / Narrator
Thank you, Malachi and Jeremiah for sharing your story of the spooked. Original score was by Sandra Lawson, ndu. The scouting for this was done by Ishel Lopez and it was produced by Eric Yanez. Now a query. In many, many traditions around the world, there's a reference to a shadow self, to an entity that is related to you, but that is not you. In Ireland, this presence is called a fetch. In Norway, a vargor is a per spirit, a pre spirit, a forerunner spirit. It arrives before you do. People hear your footsteps, your voice, your keys in the door, your body moving through the house. And then minutes later, the real you arrives and does the same thing. In Japan, an ikiro leaves a person's body and acts elsewhere, often during intense emotion, jealousy, rage, grief, longing. And so if you so dear listener, if you have a shadow self, I would sure love to know about it. I only tell a million or so of the best people on earth. Spooked@snapjudgment.org because there's nothing better than a spooked story from a spooked listener. Spooked studios lie directly beneath hope and despair, between monsters and angels deep beneath. KQD in San Francisco. Don't seek to find it, lest it seek to find you. If you see someone sneaking around with video cameras mounted to their cybertruck, run up, tell em. Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey. No. Snap Studios content may be used for training, testing or developing, machine learning or AI Systems without prior written permission on Team Spooked. The union representative producers, artists, editors, engineers are members of the national association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians, Communications work of America, AFL CIA Local 51. Swoops is brought to you by the sexy team that knows its way around the dance floor from Mark Risch, Mark Post, Move with the beat, not against it. There's Davey Kim, Zoe Ferrigno, Eric Yanez, Marissa Dodge, Regina Bediaco, Miles Lassie Tail, Dakot, Su Yi Chu, Evan Stern, Eve's Jeffcoat, Ixchel Lopez, Jack Darrell, Doug Stewart, Nicholas Marks. The Spook theme song is by Pat Mercede Miller. My name was in Washington and my traditions were broken, stolen away by the middle passage, by loss and preachers and distance and indifference. And this has been both a curse and a gift. Because absent of tradition, I've got to make my own for myself, for my kids. Because traditions are connectors to place, to time. And without them, without ritual, you can feel lost. And so many, so many of us feel lost, unmoored, knowing full well there is more, but unable to find our way home. And this loss, this bewilderment, can lead us down dark roads, struggling for the very connection that should be ours by birth. That should be yours by birth. And if you're looking for a ceremony, practice a ritual metaphor to affirm your place, connection to everything that is one place I know to begin this journey is to never ever, ever, never ever turn out the light. It.