The Possessed Totem Pole

In my 20’s, my roommate Robin and I loved to junk shop in second hand stores. I looked for romantic mementos - shiny silver platters or ornate picture frames. Robin looked for the most ridiculous, ugliest junk she could find.

I was digging through a pile of plates when she came to me, sniggering and crying with laughter. Over her sleeve, she slowly revealed a 4” totem pole. A plaster cast, painted in bright acrylic by a child, it had a frog-like face in the center, sticking out a very pink tongue. “Bleh!” she said, and laughed some more.

Of course she brought it home with her, and hung it on the wall of our art studio.

I told her I didn’t know why she liked that thing. It reminded me of the Brady Bunch episode where the tiki idol was cursed, or the Trilogy of Terror doll that comes to life. We both laughed as Robin acted out what the totem pole might do if it came to life, sticking out her tongue and making a gagging noise. Not very scary.

I went to my evening class, leaving Robin to work on a woodcut, alone.

When I came home, the ugly little totem pole sat in the hallway outside our front door.

I left it there.

Robin was working when she heard something fall. It was the little plaster totem pole. The hair on her arms raised. She picked it up and laughed at herself, hanging it on the wall again.

It was just a stupid kid art project!

While she was working, she couldn’t shake the feeling that the ridiculous frog face on the totem pole was watching her. She kept glancing up, expecting it to fall again, feeling it was sticking its ridiculous pink tongue out at her. When the carving tool slipped and cut her finger, she gave up.

She put it outside the apartment door.

It went back to the junk store the next day.

Good riddance.