You Better Pay Your Bills..

Happy Halloween everyone! What better day to share a little Barbadian Folktale than the day of witches and warewolves. Today we are going to talk about duppies - Caribbean evil ghosts and spirits. There is a tale amongst islanders that people can be scared by duppies into paying their debts. The tale has it that if a certain spiritual ritual is performed on your street you will be forced into submission, as debt collectors used to dabble in the black magic market. It is said that men dressed in black, duppy messengers if you may, perform a ritual and etch symbols into the ground. Everything would be deathly quiet and then the screeching would start, dogs howl and those cold chills would run down your spine as you sit in fear. The next morning, everything goes back to normal (no one speaking a word of the night before) and the debt collectors can be seen at the door steps of many with money being passed. Are there any spooky folktales where you are from? We would love to hear them!