Category: Folklore Education
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Mackinder’s Ghost is Winning the Heartland!
Read more: Mackinder’s Ghost is Winning the Heartland!Forget the noise. The Heartland—that landlocked core of Eurasia from the Baltic to the Gobi—controls the board in 2025. Mackinder drew the map in 1904. We’re living it. Mackinder Strategies proves it: geography + data = power. Here’s the cold truth. The Rule, Still Ironclad Control Eastern Europe → Control the Heartland → Control the…
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Trick-or-Treating Gone Wrong.
Read more: Trick-or-Treating Gone Wrong.There is a special place in my heart for trick-or-treating. Hanging out with friends, sneaking off to the rich neighborhoods to get better candy, and hoping mom and dad find a razor blade in one of the apples I received while inspecting every item in my bag. I drank the two cans of beer I…
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Rich Autumn Rituals
Read more: Rich Autumn RitualsHalloween, as a holiday, originated from the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, celebrated in regions in Ireland and Scotland over 2,000 years ago to mark the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter, when it was believed the boundary between the living and the dead thinned. The American tradition of Halloween evolved…
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The Soul-Stealing Lens: Eerie Encounter with Photography
Read more: The Soul-Stealing Lens: Eerie Encounter with PhotographyImagine a time when the click of a shutter could ensnare a soul, or when a simple portrait might invite dark forces into your life. Where ancient spirituality weaves through every aspect of existence, photography has always been more than a mere art form—it’s a portal to the unseen. From its colonial origins to modern-day…
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Yen and Superstitions
Read more: Yen and SuperstitionsWe’ve all heard stories about good luck charms, from a rabbit’s foot to a four-leaf clover. But imagine if a coin in your wallet or a piece of change in your new car was thought to bring good fortune. In Japan, this isn’t just a tale; it’s a common belief tied to the humble 5…
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Two-Thousand-Yard Stare
Read more: Two-Thousand-Yard StareThe “thousand-yard stare” (sometimes referred to as the “two-thousand-yard stare”) is a term describing the distant, focused daze of combat participants who have experienced severe trauma or shell shock. It was popularized and ideologized by a 1944 painting titled The Two Thousand Yard Stare by war artist Tom Lea, who embedded with U.S. Marines during…
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The Disappearing Stairs in Kansas
Read more: The Disappearing Stairs in KansasIn Kansas, two ghost stories are considered the most frightening: Sallie House in Atchison and the legends surrounding the Stull Cemetery. While Stull has an urban legend of being a “gateway to hell,” the Sallie House features decades of documented, escalating paranormal violence and demonic overtones, making it arguable the scariest ghost story in the state. The…
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Hoof Prints and Screams
Read more: Hoof Prints and ScreamsThe scariest donkey-related ghost story is the legend of the Donkey Lady Bridge in San Antonio, Texas. It is an urban legend with several unsettling variations, all of which culminate in a horrifying fate for the central character. Her ghost, a half-human, half-donkey figure, is said to haunt a bridge on Old Applewhite Road. The most cited…
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Folklore Education Sessions
Read more: Folklore Education SessionsLocal libraries can play a significant role in organizing and hosting Folklore Education Sessions by leveraging their position as trusted community hubs. They can provide space, resources, and outreach to facilitate interactive storytelling and partnerships with local experts. Host and Curate Programs Partner with Community Experts Provide and Promote Resources