my dad was known for his campfire stories... and for trying to scare us kids (many nieces and nephews too) by making animal noises and shaking the tent while we slept.. or tried to...
one of my favorite stories was about a mystery creature in the woods.. it went like this:
"while on a hunting trip i was off scouting... i got separated from my hunting buddies... it got dark but i was on the trail of some moving game..at some point i lost the trail and figured it was time to head back to camp...only.. i had gotten turned around and i wasn't sure where i was....i started walking in the direction i thought camp might be... i was looking for anything familiar that would lead me there... i was hungry and tired.. and it was dark... the trees hid most of the starlight and i hadn't thought to bring my flashlight... suddenly i heard this whooping noise.. it sounded like a bird flapping it's wings... but this... had to have been a big bird... bigger than any bird i knew existed.... i shook it off and kept on walking... then i heard it again.. except this time the whooping was followed by a low growl... now.. i don't know any birds that growl neither... maybe they screech or squawk.. but never growl.. the next time i heard it.. it seemed closer.. much closer.. too close... so i squatted at he base of a tree and loaded my gun... i sat... and i listened.... i must have sat for ten minutes or so when i heard it... coming right for me... i took aim and the noise and shot off two rounds... i didn't hit it.. because i still heard it flying.. only... away from me... i hadn't been able to see it clearly when i aimed.. i only made out the silhouette of it's wings... they didn't look like bird's wings.. they looked more like bat wings... only very big... i wasn't able to see it's face but i saw it's eyes... looking right at me... they were red and glowing... i sat still.. listening... trying to to breathe.... i heard it circle...then come toward me again... the sound was right in line with me.. it wasn't just coming toward me.. it was coming at me... i took aim again... but waited.... waited till i couldn't stand it anymore.. and i shot... one round... in the echo of the bang i heard a thumb and the ground shook.... i had hit it.. it was down... it was close... at this point i was safe enough to try to head back to camp but i wanted to see this thing....i decided to stay right where i was until morning... i hunkered down and tried to sleep...finally the sun started to come up and i looked around me.. it was quiet and still... i walked a few yards ahead of me expecting to see the creature.. but i saw nothing... i thought maybe it was farther than i thought so i walked on... and still.. no creature... then.. in a pile of leaves and pine needles i saw blood.... no feathers.. and it looked as if something big had been laying there... i looked around.. for a blood trail.. maybe it had crawled off to die under a bush... but there was no trail... when i made it back to camp i told everyone about it and they came with me to look for it.. surely.. with all that blood i must have killed it.. but we never found it.. and we never knew what it was"
now.. many people have heard this story.. but it changes every time he tells it...one time he said he saw it and it looked like a naked very old man with wings.. another time it had teeth like razor blades... but one thing stayed the same.. everyone.. believed it... it was suspect in the way it always changed... in the way all of his stories changed.. the one about the ghost he drove home, the Indian statue that came to life and stalked campers, the flying Dutchman... so i asked him last year.. if ANY of his stories were true...now it's my secret to keep.. happy birthday papa!
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