Between Myth and Belief

Imagine walking home down a dark Danish road in the early 1800s and meeting a lone white lamb in the fog. Now imagine counting its legs and wishing you hadn’t.

This week on Between Myth and Belief, Beth and Michelle head into the churchyard to meet the Church Grim, the guardian spirit of European folklore said to watch over the dead after the mourners go home. It might be a black dog, a phantom lamb, a razor-backed galloping sow, or the last soul buried in the ground.

We dig into where the Grim came from, including the old belief that something had to be buried first, whether an animal under the cornerstone or a human in the very first grave. Along the way we cover the death lamb of Ryslinge, the piglet that led a woman to a churchyard gate, and the Scottish Highland tradition of the faire chlaidh, which sent grieving families to blows over who got buried first. We also meet the drowned sailors of Danish legend and the black dogs of the Norfolk coast, and we take a Swedish Year Walk to the church door on New Year’s Eve, a journey that inspired a certain spooky indie video game.

Is the Church Grim a Victorian collector’s romantic theory, a clever way to keep grave robbers away, or a very human wish that someone stay behind to watch over the people we love? Beth, your resident skeptical secular witch, lands somewhere between wild boar in a graveyard and something that’s still standing at the gate. We also take a look at what a church grim might look like in the Appalachian mountains.

Calendar of the Wierd:

This week on Between Myth and Belief, Beth and Michelle head into the Blue Ridge Mountains to chase the Brown Mountain Lights, one of Appalachia's most stubborn ghost light legends. We start with the three stories people tell about where the lights come from: a Cherokee and Catawba battle, a faithful lantern-carrying searcher whose legend got a lot more complicated once we looked at who was telling it, and a woman named Belinda who may not be finished yet.

Then the government gets involved. Two U.S. Geological Survey investigations blamed trains and car headlights, and the locals were not having it, since plenty of them swore they saw the lights before either existed. We also cover decades of cameras, an experiment with a very bright arc light, and a roadside rock shop owner whose encounter with the lights involved a crystal tunnel, the lost planet Pee-Wom, and a ride to Venus.

Is it ball lightning? Piezoelectric glow from quartz in the rock? Refracted headlights bent by wet mountain air? Or something that still hasn't been explained? Beth, your resident skeptical secular witch, lands somewhere between swamp gas and magic, and explains why the stories we keep telling about this mountain matter more than the photons.

Bring a flashlight. Don't touch anything glowing.

Calendar of the Weird: October 4 to 17

WitchFest at Gardner Village All Month Long

Attributions:

Hilltop_meadow_20200328.mp3 by rabban625 -- https://freesound.org/s/511088/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

Song by StockTune

This week on Between Myth and Belief, Michelle takes Beth to Lynn, Massachusetts, and the strange story of Dungeon Rock. According to legend, pirate Thomas Veal was trapped inside the cave during a 1658 earthquake, along with a fortune in stolen treasure. Nearly two centuries later, spiritualist Hiram Marble decided he was going to find it.

With help from mediums, messages supposedly sent by the dead, dynamite, chisels, and an absolutely unreasonable amount of determination, Hiram and his son Edwin spent decades tunneling through the rock in search of pirate gold that always seemed to be just a little farther away.

We talk pirates, buried treasure, Spiritualism, questionable historical sources, ghostly excavation advice, and the very human ability to keep digging long after most people would have gone home.

Was Thomas Veal real? Was there ever treasure inside Dungeon Rock? Were the spirits actually helping, or was Hiram simply very committed to the bit?

Grab a lantern. We’re digging in.

Calendar of the Weird:

September 19–20 — Mothman Festival, Point Pleasant, West Virginia. The annual festival commemorates the 1966 Point Pleasant sightings, with paranormal speakers, TNT-area activities, cosplay, music, vendors and other Mothman-related events.

September 19 — International Observe the Moon Night. NASA’s worldwide lunar-observation event encourages people not only to look at the Moon, but to explore the scientific, cultural and personal connections humans have made with it—making it an easy doorway into lunar gods, monsters, omens and folklore.

September 22 — Autumn Equinox / Mabon. The equinox occurs at 8:05 p.m. EDT on September 22. Many modern Pagans observe the season as Mabon or Harvest Home, while equinox and harvest traditions have accumulated myths concerning balance, the darkening year, death and renewal; the Persephone story is one familiar mythological association.

September 26 — The calendar goes feral. The Harvest Moon is full that night, with Saturn appearing nearby. September 26 is also National Ghost Hunting Day, a modern paranormal observance held on the last Saturday of September. And in Van Meter, Iowa, the Van Meter Visitor Festival celebrates the town’s famous 1903 bat-like creature legend with monster walks, paranormal presentations and folklore events—which is particularly fun given that we just visited the Visitor on the podcast.

September 29 — Michaelmas and the púca's war on blackberries. Michaelmas celebrates St. Michael, traditionally depicted defeating Satan or a dragon. British and Irish folklore also warns against eating blackberries after Michaelmas: some stories blame the Devil for ruining them after being cast from Heaven, while Irish versions say the púca soils or otherwise spoils the berries. The National Folklore Collection preserves accounts in which children were explicitly warned away from post-Michaelmas berries because the púca guarded them and eating them could bring ill luck.

October 2–4 — Bigfoot at the 40, Honobia, Oklahoma. Beginning October 2—so it falls inside your calendar window—the southeastern Oklahoma gathering combines Bigfoot research presentations with vendors, live music, camping and appropriately atmospheric campfire storytelling.

Sound attribution:

Rocky Road Instrumental by studioste -- https://freesound.org/s/819232/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

In 1903, something strange came to Van Meter, Iowa.

For several nights, townspeople reported mysterious lights moving across rooftops, a huge winged creature with a glowing light on its forehead, enormous three-toed tracks, and a smell powerful enough to leave one witness disoriented. Naturally, the people of Van Meter responded by shooting at it. A lot.

This week on Between Myth and Belief, Beth and Michelle dig into the story of the Van Meter Visitor, one of Iowa’s strangest cryptid legends. We look at the original 1903 newspaper reports, the real people named as witnesses, the abandoned coal mine at the center of the story, and how a strange light eventually became an eight-foot, featherless, apparently bulletproof creature.

Was it a large bird seen under terrible conditions? Mine gas and hallucinations? A hoax amplified by sensational journalism? An unknown animal? Something much stranger?

And just how many armed men does it take before Iowa officially declares war on zoology?

We separate what we can actually trace to 1903 from what the legend became later and explore the space where eyewitness testimony, folklore, skepticism, and belief all start stepping on each other’s toes.

Welcome to Van Meter. Mind the glowing bird thing.

The Calendar of the Weird:

September 6 through the 19th

Astrological & Astronomical Alignments

Paranormal, Cryptid & Metaphysical Conventions

Supernatural, Haunted & Cultural Folk Traditions

Sounds used: 

Iowa Tree Insect 30s..mp3 by john9 -- https://freesound.org/s/215176/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

What do you do when a disease is killing your family, medicine has no answers, and your neighbors are convinced the dead are responsible?

This week on Between Myth and Belief, we dig into the New England Vampire Panic, a strange and deeply human chapter of American folklore born from fear, grief, and the devastating spread of tuberculosis, then known as consumption.

We talk about the exhumations, burned hearts and organs, desperate folk remedies, and the belief that dead family members could somehow drain the life from those still living. Along the way, we visit some of the most infamous cases, including Mercy Brown, Frederick Ransom, Rachel Harris Burton, and the mysterious grave of “JB,” whose remains were found rearranged in a skull-and-crossbones pattern.

There were no vampires, but there were frightened communities trying to make sense of a disease they could not see or understand. Somewhere between folklore, medicine, religion, and mass hysteria, the dead became the scapegoats.

Also, a small but important piece of advice from us: please do not drink the ashes.

Join us as we explore the history, folklore, and very real tragedy behind The New England Vampire Panic.

Sound Effect by Aman Kumar from Pixabay 

Sound Effect by Subhasis Mandal from Pixabay 

Sound Effect by Universfield from Pixabay

Meet the Nuckelavee: Orkney folklore's most relentless water horse, a fused horse-and-rider with no skin, a single burning red eye, and breath that poisons crops and livestock. Unlike the Kelpie or the Each-uisge, there's no taming this one, no trick, no deal. Just one rule that might save your life: never let it catch you between salt water and fresh.

This episode traces the Nuckelavee back to Walter Traill Dennison's 1891 folklore collection, unpacks its ties to the Norse spirits Mither o' the Sea and Teran, and digs into why a culture surviving on thin soil and thinner margins needed a monster with "unmixed malignity" instead of one you could reason with. Along the way: the naming taboo that kept islanders from saying its name out loud, the real economic collapse hiding inside the story, and what a 19th-century Orcadian cautionary tale still has to teach us about fear, boundaries, and knowing your own exit.

Skeptical, not dismissive. Salt on one side, fresh on the other. Never get caught in between.

Calendar of the Weird:

August 9–11: The Waning Dark & Veil Thinning

The moon slimmers into its final waning crescent before the blackout, marking a prime window for banishing rituals, ghost hunting, and dreamwork.

 TimeAndDate - Night Sky & Cosmic Calendar

August 12: The Great Cosmic Convergence (Total Solar Eclipse + Dark New Moon + 6-Planet Parade)

A monumental celestial trifecta: A Total Solar Eclipse paths across Greenland, Iceland, and Spain, while six planets (Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune) line up pre-dawn.Astrologically, a Leo South Node eclipse signals a intense reset point for power dynamics and shadow work.

 NASA Science - Total Solar Eclipse August 12, 2026

 Star Walk - August 12 Triple Celestial Alignment Guide

August 12–13 (Overnight): Peak Perseid Meteor Shower under Zero-Moon Skies

Because of the dark New Moon eclipse, night skies are pitch black—creating optimal conditions to watch up to 100 shooting stars per hour. Celestial fire magic at its finest.

 Farmer's Almanac - Perseid Meteor Shower 2026 Guide

August 15: Conjunction of Jupiter & Mercury + Heliacal Rising of Sirius

Mercury and Jupiter align in the sky while the ancient portal star Sirius makes its heliacal rising at dawn—historically tied in occult traditions to high spiritual energy and Lion's Gate integration.

 In-The-Sky.org - Planetary Conjunctions

August 17: National Black Cat Appreciation Day

A day dedicated to dispelling old superstitious stigmas around black cats, familiar spirits, and witchcraft history.

 National Today - Black Cat Appreciation Day

August 18: National Bad Poetry Day (Vogon & Hex Edition)

Celebrate the supernatural power of terrible rhymes—write a cursed poem or intentionally awful spell.

 Holiday Insights - Bad Poetry Day

August 20: First Quarter Moon (Intuition & Psychic Activation)

The moon reaches its First Quarter phase, building intense energy as the cosmos moves toward late-August. Ideal for tarot, divination, and psychic readings.

 NASA - Moon Phase Calendar

August 22: Southern Hemisphere Hoodie-Hoo Day & Spirit Banishing

Step outside at noon local time, throw your hands up in the air, and yell "HOODIE-HOO!" to banish lingering bad vibes, winter funk, and unwanted house haunts.

 AnydayGuide - Hoodie-Hoo Day Traditions

Sound Attributions:

Spooky scottish night.wav by inchadney -- https://freesound.org/s/399561/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0

Moan.wav by GoodListener -- https://freesound.org/s/322444/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

On May 22, 2011, an EF5 tornado tore through Joplin, Missouri, killing 158 people in one of the deadliest storms in modern American history. In the aftermath, something strange surfaced, child survivors across the town began describing the same figure: a tall, human-like being with enormous butterfly wings who appeared in the worst moments of the storm, shielding them from debris and standing between them and collapsing buildings. This week, Beth and Michelle dig into the legend of the Butterfly People of Joplin, where it came from, why butterfly wings instead of the usual angel iconography, and what psychology, trauma, and Bible Belt folklore might have to say about it. As always, we land somewhere between myth and belief.

Calendar of the Weird:

Essex Witches & Pagans Lammas Festival

Dates: August 1, 2026

Location: Chelmsford, Essex, United Kingdom (Galleywood Heritage Centre)

Details: Celebrates the first harvest of the Celtic Wheel with a witchy market, spiritual readings, community workshops, and open rituals.

Link: Earth Spirit Events

Lughnasadh Rite at White Mountain Druid Sanctuary

Dates: August 1, 2026

Location: Trout Lake, Washington, USA (Trout Lake Abbey)

Details: An outdoor Irish pantheon rite honoring the god Lugh Samildanach and the Lady of the White Salmon at the sanctuary's stone circle, preceded by a community potluck.

Link: White Mountain Druids

Lughnasadh Art & Music Festival

Dates: August 1, 2026

Location: Newport-on-Tay, Fife, Scotland (Forgan Arts Centre)

Details: Marks the turning of the Celtic Wheel through live Scottish music, workshops, and traditional harvest art installations.

Link: Scottish Contemporary Art Network

20th Annual Vancouver Island Pagan Pride Day

Dates: August 8, 2026

Location: Campbell River, British Columbia, Canada

Details: Community gathering featuring public rituals, educational workshops, and information tables centered around the four elements.

Link: Campbell River Mirror Event Overview

New Orleans Paracon

Dates: July 31 – August 2, 2026

Location: New Orleans, Louisiana, USA (Crowne Plaza French Quarter)

Details: Focuses on French Quarter haunted history, voodoo traditions, and local vampire lore, featuring guest speakers, ghost hunts, and educational workshops.

Link: New Orleans Paracon Official Site

Deep South Para-comi-con

Dates: August 8 – 9, 2026

Location: Enterprise, Alabama, USA

Details: A hybrid convention blending paranormal investigation panels, local ghost lore, horror culture, and metaphysical vendors.

Link: Ghosts & Getaways Event Listing

The Legendary Llangollen Faery Festival

Dates: August 8 – 9, 2026

Location: Llangollen, Wales, United Kingdom

Details: A weekend celebration steeped in Celtic fairy folklore, artisan crafts, storytelling, and music.

Link: Moondragon UK Festival Guide

Tornado Sirens - Tulsa by Filmscore -- https://freesound.org/s/515695/ -- License: Creative Commons 0

In the late 1980s, a photocopied brochure started circulating through coffee shops, bulletin board systems, and fax machines. It described a research commune hidden in the New Jersey Pine Barrens, a homemade machine called the Egg, and a doorway to a parallel Earth with no people on it. This week Beth and Michelle dig into Ong's Hat, the true ghost town turned collaborative fiction that became one of the earliest alternate reality games on the internet. They trace the story from a real 1700s land grant through Princeton dropouts, an anarchist ashram, forbidden physics, and a decades-long hoax that its own creator never fully admitted to. Along the way, Beth makes the case for why a story doesn't need to be true to still work like a spell, and why belief itself might be the real gate.

The Calendar of the Weird for July 12th through the 25th:

Keep up with the strange, the spooky, and the unexplained happening across the country over the next two weeks! Here’s where you can find the weirdness:

July 13 — Embrace Your Geekness Day: A global holiday dedicated to letting your inner nerd fly free—whether that's cryptids, UFOs, or local folklore.

July 14 — Pandemonium Day: A day celebrating wild, unexpected chaos. Perfect for looking into unpredictable high-strangeness!

July 17 – 19, 2026 — Days of the Dead Indianapolis: A massive weekend celebrating horror, macabre pop culture, and all things spooky at the Indianapolis Marriott East.

Link: HorrorCons Event Calendar

July 20 — Space Exploration Day: Celebrating humanity's journeys into the cosmos—and keeping our eyes wide open for whatever might be looking back at us.

July 25, 2026 — The 8th Annual Smoky Mountain Bigfoot Conference: The massive single-day gathering at the Gatlinburg Convention Center in Tennessee. Meet leading researchers, browse cryptid gear, and listen to real eyewitness accounts.

Link: Smoky Mountain Bigfoot Conference Details

July 25 – 26, 2026 — Coastal Haunts Paracon: A community-focused paranormal convention in Brunswick, Georgia, at the Center for the Arts. Features paranormal teams, mediums, and TikTok's "Paranormal Princess," Haylee Michelle.

Link: Coastal Haunts Paracon Info

Sounds Used: 

Mysterious Radio Signal by olliegw -- https://freesound.org/s/792398/ -- License: Attribution NonCommercial 4.0

Music by https://pixabay.com/users/universfield-28281460/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=161660" Universfield from https://pixabay.com/music//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=161660 Pixabay

They live in the sea as seals. On land, they pass as human. And if someone steals the skin they shed on shore, they can never go home.

Selkies are one of the oldest and most quietly heartbreaking figures in Celtic and Norse folklore. Creatures who ask almost nothing of the people around them, and are betrayed anyway. In this episode, Beth and Michelle explore the selkie legends of Scotland, the Shetland Islands, and the remote cliffs of the Faroe Islands: where these stories came from, what they were really trying to say, and why they hit differently now than they probably should.

They dig into the documented folklore and the possible real-world origins, including the Inuit and Sami people whose sealskin kayaks and parkas may have done more worldbuilding than any storyteller intended. They cover the man who stabbed a selkie king, the otter king who showed up when it mattered, the Faroese women who chose the sea over the children they loved, and the Scottish clan that traces its webbed fingers back to a fisherman's marriage.

Also discussed: the fragile nature of choice, duality as a way of life, the longing that never quite goes away, and why Michelle is officially breaking up with Mothman live on air.

Calendar of the Weird for June 28 through July 11 

Cryptid & Paranormal Events

The Lizard Man Stomp Date: Saturday, June 28, 2026 | 10 AM – 2 PM Location: Downtown Main Street, Bishopville, SC What it is: South Carolina's beloved annual festival celebrating the Lizard Man of Scape Ore Swamp -- the 8-foot, red-eyed, three-toed swamp creature first sighted in June 1988. Expect a parade down Main Street, live music, arts and crafts vendors, a car show, kids' games, face painting, food trucks, and of course, the Lizard Man himself available for photos. A free, family-friendly community event that keeps the legend alive. https://www.facebook.com/LIZARDMANSTOMP/

Hodag Heritage Festival Date: July 9-12, 2026 (Heritage Festival runs alongside Hodag Country Fest week) Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin What it is: Rhinelander celebrates its legendary local cryptid -- the Hodag, a fearsome horned beast said to haunt the Northwoods -- with a day of folklore, community, and creature lore. Features a traditional pancake breakfast, the beloved Hodag Calling Contest, live music, a Hodag Historical City Bus Tour, cryptid speakers, and more. A deeply local tradition that has made this beast Rhinelander's identity for over a century. https://www.rhinelanderchamber.com/hodagheritagefestival/

Sacred Days & Observances

June 29 -- Full Strawberry Moon in Capricorn The last of the summer's early moons, named by Indigenous traditions for the ripening of wild strawberries. In Capricorn, this is a moon that rewards focus and ambition -- a grounded full moon energy perfect for taking stock of what you've built so far this year.

July 4 -- Independence Day / Day of Pax Celebrated by patriotic American Wiccans as a day to honor Lady Liberty and perform workings for peace and the wellbeing of the land. In ancient Rome, this date also honored Pax, goddess of peace and harmony -- making it a layered day of fire, freedom, and intention.

July 6 -- Day of the Horned Goddesses An ancient Pagan observance honoring all horned goddesses across traditions: Hathor, Hera, Isis, Juno, Selene, and more. Also the opening day of the San Fermin Festival in Pamplona, Spain -- yes, that includes the Running of the Bulls, which carries its own deep mythological weight around the sacred bull as a symbol of fertility and divine masculine power.

July 7 -- Tanabata (Star Festival) Date: July 7, 2026 Location: Japan (and celebrated by Japanese communities worldwide) What it is: One of Japan's five traditional seasonal festivals, Tanabata celebrates the one night each year when the star-crossed celestial lovers Orihime (the star Vega) and Hikoboshi (the star Altair) are allowed to cross the Milky Way and reunite. Rooted in a Chinese myth brought to Japan in the 8th century, the tradition involves writing wishes on small strips of colorful paper called tanzaku and hanging them on bamboo branches. A festival of longing, starlight, and love against all odds. https://nationaltoday.com/tanabata/

July 9 -- Panathenaea (Ancient Greek) Every four years in ancient Athens, a six-day festival began on this date in honor of Athena, goddess of wisdom and craft. Also traditionally celebrated as the divine birthday of Dionysus, god of wine, ecstasy, and transformation.

July 10 -- Day of Holda A day honoring Holda (also known as Hulda or Holle), the ancient Germanic and Norse goddess of the underworld, winter, spinning, and the hidden order beneath the earth. Marked with candles, offerings of rose petals, and prayers to the keeper of the dead.

July 14 -- New Moon in Cancer The dark of the moon in Cancer -- a watery, introspective new moon perfect for intention-setting around home, ancestry, and emotional healing. Cancer energy invites us inward before the sun moves on.

In the Sky This Fortnight

June 29 -- Full Strawberry Moon in Capricorn July 5 -- Earth reaches Aphelion (its farthest point from the Sun in its orbit) July 14 -- New Moon in Cancer

Events & Festivals

15th Annual WitchsFest USA -- Ye Olde Pagan Street Faire Date: Saturday, July 11, 2026 | 10 AM – 5 PM Location: Astor Place (between Broadway & Lafayette Streets), New York City -- FREE to attend What it is: New York City's beloved outdoor pagan street fair, hosted by the NYC Wiccan Family Temple. Now in its 15th year, WitchsFest USA brings together witches, pagans, druids, hoodoo practitioners, Santeria communities, and seekers of all paths for a day of live performances, workshops, a psychic court, magical vendors, a silent auction, and a summer blessing ritual -- all on the streets of the East Village. Benefits Feed America, City Harvest, and St. Jude Children's Hospital. https://witchsfestusa.org/

Attributions: 

160904 seals at low tide.WAV by Bluesy1905 -- https://freesound.org/s/353439/ -- License: Attribution 3.0

Music by https://pixabay.com/users/echonn-30541699/?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=220954 Szymon Jasiński from https://pixabay.com//?utm_source=link-attribution&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=music&utm_content=220954 Pixabay

In the highlands of southern France, something was hunting people. For three years, from 1764 to 1767, La Bête du Gévaudan killed over a hundred men, women, and children across 700 square miles of rugged countryside, embarrassed the royal court of King Louis XV, and launched one of the largest coordinated hunts in French history. Soldiers failed. Professional wolf hunters failed. The king's own gun bearer declared it finished and went home. The attacks resumed two months later.

But inside the terror were the people. A 19-year-old servant girl named Marie-Jeanne who stood her ground on a riverbank and drove a spear into the creature's chest. A 10-year-old boy who organized his friends and charged the beast with sticks. A royal court that rewarded the boy and gave the girl nothing. Not for 230 years anyway.

Join Beth and Michelle as they dig into the historical record, the werewolf folklore, the silver bullet origin story you didn't know you knew, and the very human question of what we turn our monsters into when the truth won't hold still.

Whatever the Beast of Gévaudan was, it left 113 confirmed dead behind. And a mystery that France never fully solved.

Links to Events:

Strange and sacred market event in June 2026 | Seneca, SC The Strange Dark and Mysterious Market 2026! Sunday, June 14th

Magic, Witchcraft and Nature Conference

Dreamers, Witches & Mystics Virtual Summit

Witches' Magick Market - Solstice Spell Market

Witchy Workshop - Tarot with Cats

June 15 – New Moon in Gemini: Seed intentions for communication, curiosity, and mental agility as the twins’ quicksilver energy opens new pathways of expression.

June 20-21 Litha (summer solstice) northern hemisphere

June 23 – Day of the Lady & Lord of the Sidhe: A modern neopagan observance honoring the Fae and the otherworldly aspects of the divine.

June 24 – Day of Household Deities: A modern devotional practice for cleansing and rededicating altars or household shrines, honoring the protective spirits of the home.

June 29 – Full Strawberry Moon in Capricorn: A moon of adventure, truth-seeking, and seasonal abundance.

Sounds used: 

Wolf run.wav by sabotovat -- https://freesound.org/s/414350/ -- License: Attribution 3.0

Moutons_Chateau_Matin by nicotep -- https://freesound.org/s/809220/ -- License: Creative Commons 0