Fear is all around us

Shampe

What vampire is closely related to a wendigo and sasquatch? According to Choctaw folklore, a Shampe. Coming across a bear in the woods is the least of your worries. Shampes are described as being giant, grotesque beasts seen with or without coarse brown hair who live in the deepest part of the woods. He is also described as a large hairy man. They can't stand bright sunshine or open air as it makes them weak and sick. Some versions of the story state he is a man-eater. In others, he abducts Choctaw women.

These vampire-beasts were known to follow hunters carrying their kills. The sent of blood attracts them to you. Their keen sense of smell helps them track any person or animal which makes up for their terrible vision.

Considering who it is kin to, the Shampe gives off certain warning signs that lets you know it is near. Their foul smell is a huge one. It is believed that many people have died from this scent. Another giveaway is the whistling sound they make as they stalk their prey. If you ever hear and/or smell these two warnings, drop whatever wounded/dead animal you have and run as fast as you can.

Reports of this creature have been few and far between as of lately. However, some Choctaw people have heard its whistle in recent years.

Have you ever heard of the Shampe? It's real. This is my story.

maxbrokeaway

What I'm about to write down are personal accounts. I'm 32 now, 33 next month. Honestly, when I think back on the events, I don't know how I made it this far. There are countless details, that had they been any different, I wouldn't be here today able to type on a computer. I will try to be as descriptive as possible, but this all happened 17 years ago. I don't have any journals to recall, no video tapes. It's all being pulled from my memory. And I don't know how much of it my mind blocked out or changed due to the trauma, to make it more sensible so that I don't have to violently flinch every time a memory resurfaces (Which still happens more than I care to admit).

My interest started when I was 7, maybe 8. This is when I developed my deep fascination with the unknown, the bump in the night, the monster under the bed. I remember being at my grandparents house after a healthy thanksgiving meal, sitting on my mother's lap watching an episode of "Unsolved Mysteries". Robert Stack's voice alone had a way of terrifying and captivating you at once. Anyway, this particular episode was about "Bigfoot". Seeing "witness recount" drawings of an event where a supposed Bigfoot had been walking around their house early one morning after a fresh snow. The images scared the ever loving shit out of me at the time! I remember turning my face away and pressing it deep into the blanket that coverd my mother and I. The next day however, all I wanted to do was go outside and go "Bigfoot Hunting".Growing up, whether it be cryptozoology, ghosts, aliens, or anything paranormal in nature. Anything that scared me, fascinated me.

My Mom used to boast to her friends how brave and courageous I was, being so interested in these scary things. Back then, I gladly accepted that title. Now, I know that your mind has a way of giving you a false sense of security when it comes to these things. Maybe it's because we see so much on TV that we just get emotionally distant from any real sense of danger. Its not bravery to chase what scares you, until that sense of security is gone and your mind can't protect you from the reality you've gotten yourself into. Let's just say when it came down to it, I discovered that I am not brave. Not in the slightest.

My Mom and Dad divorced when I was young. She remarried one of my Uncle Eric's good friends, who lived in rural Alabama. So that's where we moved. He was kind of a braggart, and a wannabe outdoors-men. Full of bad advice and ignorance when it came to roughing it. But, one thing he did have, was stories. One of his stories was about he and his Native American friend named Steve (yeah, I know), going out to the woods when they were kids to look for "The Shampe". From his explanation, the Shampe is like a Sasquatch, but unlike Sasquatch stories, the Shampe would actually attack and consume people, and that humans were actually part of it's natural diet. In rural Alabama, it's not uncommon for kids to go missing. Runaways and what not. But according to my Step-father, this wasn't a new phenomenon. The Shampe was a local legend, and he was chock full of stories about it.