EP 5: South Texas Tales

*SPOILER ALERT: The following article contains spoilers for Episode 5. Before reading, listen to South Texas Tales here. Afterward, feel free to check out this "Behind-the-Episode" blog for additional info and photos! And visit our Patreon page for more extras!

The Boy In My Room

Sunset in Pawnee, Texas

As some of you already know, I actually grew up in South Texas. In fact, I grew up in the exact town where "The Boy In My Room" took place. To go even further, Clint and his family are my relatives! Clint, Andrew, and their youngest brother Joseph are my first cousins. Their parents, Rachel and James are my aunt and uncle. And Desmond, who's also featured in this segment is my cousin as well. I'm the oldest of the bunch, but growing up without siblings myself, Andrew and I were very close. He was like a brother to me.

Me & Andrew just chillin' by my TMNT toy box in Pawnee, TX

Growing up in Pawnee, there really wasn't much to do. The town is microscopic and desolate. Back in the early 90's there was literally nothing in the town - no gas station, no place to eat, nothing. Time there was spent running in coastal fields, walking to Grandma's house, and getting into trouble. Andrew and I were good at that.

Andrew was 3 years younger than me, and then Clint came along and he was 3 years younger than Andrew. There was a decent age gap between us for a while, but once Clint caught up in age, he fit right in and we saw each other almost every day.

Andrew holding his little bro, Clint

That said, we never really talked about ghosts or hauntings, ever. I honestly was the only one in our family that was interested in the paranormal, and it started at a really young age. I can remember writing a horror short story at around age 6 or 7. I somehow got my Dad to write out what I was saying aloud and then he helped illustrate it. He definitely had no interest in the stuff either but never stopped me from it.

When we were older and Clint opened up one day what he'd experienced in his room, I was a bit shocked. He wasn't the type to readily talk about stuff like this. I can recall how the family was all a bit unsure about the whole thing. But slowly, over time, more experiences came out. Andrew opened up again about the hand he saw cross his CD player. Desmond, our cousin who was around Clint's age, opened up about actually seeing the boy in Clint's room as well. Then, Rachel and James opened up about hearing noises.

It was all very fascinating to me how all this was unfolding within my own family. What made it more interesting to me was how they all didn't really believe in this stuff. I was in college when all this came out so I wasn't around as much, but wish I'd been able to investigate the place. However, I didn't get involved in actual paranormal investigations until my last semester of college. By this point, Clint and the family had sold the place and were living in their new place.

Left to Right: Andrew, James, Joseph, Rachel, & Clint

Clint & Andrew around the time Clint was in High School

Andrew on a horse at the ranch

Desmond & Clint

Clint and his younger brother Joseph about a few years after Clint's encounter with the boy in his room. Joseph was younger at the time of the incident and Clint mistook the figure for him at first.

The family never figured out what was really going on in their old home. They moved into their newly built home on a large plot of land not too far away from their previous residence. However, on an interesting concluding note, the family have had several new encounters in the new home. They don't know if it's related to what they experienced in their old home, but nearly everyone has had an experience.

I recorded some audio of my Uncle James and younger cousin Joseph detailing these new experiences. If you'd like to hear what I captured visit our Patreon page and become a Night Owl Patron. I will be releasing exclusive content only patrons get access to like deleted interviews, video diaries, episode updates and more.

Maybe it's time to put on my ghost-hunting hat, give Sara a call, and make a trip back to my hometown to see if I can help my family get to the bottom this new activity!

Stay restless out there my fellow night owls,

Stephen Belyeu