Prentice Pendleton and the Boo Hags: Don't let the Hag Ride Ya

Boo Hags are believed to be descendants of the Eastern European Vampires legend. They are born of bad spirits according to the Gullah culture. Nobody knows how the creatures made their way into the frightening legends of the various cultures of Western Africa but as the slave trade brought many inhabitants to the New World, their legends and cultures were brought with them. Today, the fascinating cultures of South Carolina's sea islands can tout the state's number one "bad guy" legend and cryptid and that is the Boo Hag. 

The creature is described as a human like figure with no skin. The muscles, tendons and arteries are all visible to the eye. It is hideous and to survive in the land of the living, it must take someone's skin and wear it like a meat suit. 

But, in order to "suck" from their victim, they must shed their skin and sneak into the house. The can do that by turning into insects like lies flies and crawl through any crack or crevice of your house.

They will climb on top of you while you sleep, paralyze your mind and body and then drain the life force from you. If you are able to wake up and lay your eyes upon this monster, it may just skin you alive and wear your skin like a costume and nobody will know the difference. 

The creature is strong, fast and intelligent. But it does have weaknesses. First, they have an uncontrollable need to count everything. The Gullahs believe if you place an old straw broom near your bed, it will distract the thing as it must count the bristles of the broom. Some use a colander or strainer. Either way, the Hag must count the holes. But beware, they can count fast!

The color indigo blue is their kryptonite. When they see this color it's like a thousand bee stings tearing into their flesh. Only the biggest of the fiends can fend off the power of the blue. If you suspect a hag is haunting you, find their skin and coat it with pepper. It will prevent the ghoul from getting back into its skin come morning and when the sun hits it, the monster explodes into a thousand fleshy pieces. 

Or, you can publicly challenge the Hag by announcing to everyone what it is. They are bound to a duel but, they have superhuman strength and speed, so you may want to think carefully about what you say to a Boo Hag!

Below are some resources to learn more about South Carolina's number one monster!

https://www.onlyinyourstate.com/south-carolina/gullah-culture-boo-hags-

sc/https://www.syfy.com/paranormal-witness/blog/beware-the-boo-hag

https://scetv.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/ket-storytelling-101/the-boo-hag/#.YDmoIC1h39A