Bee In The Bonnet - Splapp

The legend of Splapp is an old Indian story, that is told to native children on the night of the spirits. Better known today as Halloween!

The first thing I want to know is that our ancestors didn't tell their children scary stories. They only told them the truth... and the truth is good children with good spirits don't have to worry about the dark. Good children can walk into a dark room without any fear. Because the spirit they call Splapp lives in the darkness, and he doesn't care about good kids. They can come and go as they please, he wants nothing to do with them. He only wants one kind of kid. He wants a bad kid, a mean spirited kid, a child that shows no respect to elders. That's the kind of kid Splapp wants! He wants to grab them and trade spirits with them, so his spirit can be a little child again. And the spirit of the bad kid has to go and live in the darkness forever and ever and a day ...

Splapp is not a monster or a beast with claws. Splapp is the angry spirit of an old Indian. Splapp is a native word that literally means "Dirty Bum!"... You must understand that native language doesn't have swear words. Back in the olden days the worst insult you could tell another native, was to say that they were "Unclean!" You see back in the days of bows and arrows, it was not a good thing for a hunter to have a strong body odor, that the animals could smell. That's why the North American Native looked for campsites close to clean water. They discovered the healthy hot springs, and they even built sweat lodges. One elder even told me how she would perfume her body with the juice from the Juniper berry before she went to hunt for a husband. So never let anyone ever tell you that your ancestors were dirty savages.

As the legend goes one dark Halloween night many moons ago, a bad child threw a rock at an elders home. "BANG!" ... The loud sound scared the poor old Indian to death ,,, But just as he was about to change from his human form into his spirit form, he heard the bad child call him a "SPLAPP." This name angered him and his spirit. So when he got to the Happy Hunting Grounds, the Creator stopped him and told him angry spirits weren't welcome there. He told him he could only live in the dark shadows of old abandon houses. So that's why that every reservation since then, has at least one old abandon house. A house the good children don't go into. Splapp's house!

An elder told me about one bad little boy who went into Splapp's house. And Splapp grabbed him! .... But people say that's not true at all. They say that the truth is Little Billy went into that abandon house, on a dare. He tripped and fell, the sound woke up some animal, it jumped out of the shadows and it bushed against Billy as it ran away.

But Billy thought it was Splapp trying to get him. And that scared him silly. He was so scared he made peanut butter in his pants. That's what people say really happened.

Billy said it really was Splapp. He said Splapp jumped out of the shadows and grabbed him. He said Splapp tried to steal his spirit. But Billy said he put a thumb in each ear and finger in each nose hole. He then closed his eyes real tight. Then he prayed really loud to the Great Spirit. He promised to be a good little boy forever and ever and a day ... Then just like magic Splapp was gone.

Little Billy grew up to be a good man. Bill grew old and became the elder called William. And it was William that told me ... Splapp would have stolen his spirit that night, if it wasn't for the promise he made to the Great Spirit.

It was the Great Spirit that saved his splapp!