In a month that boasts both a Friday the 13th and Halloween, folks saddled with superstitions have it rough. I mean, all those mirrors to avoid breaking and ladders to walk around and black cats to avoid.
Horrors. And pish. Unless you grew up in my house, you have no idea what being saddled with superstitions really means. Don’t step on a crack? Child’s play. The superstitions I’ve collected in my lifetime are now a heavier burden than my Catholic guilt. And that’s saying a lot.
In addition to providing us with thick waists and big feet, my mom also saw to it that my sisters and I would carry around a sackful of superstitions during our lifetimes.
While I try not to pass them on to my own daughter, the fact that I can’t break free of them myself bodes ill for my success. When Lexi was only 5, she knew that when we were leaving the house on a long trip, we had to bless ourselves three times – once to get there, once for the visit, another to bring you home safe again – or else. I hesitate to think. …
I once lost a close pal who scoffed when I told her to say “bread and butter” when we each walked on opposite sides of an immobile object (“splitting a pole,” according to some) or our friendship was doomed. We argued the next day over looking up a coffee shop phone number and haven’t spoken since. That was 14 years ago.
Academics divide superstition into two categories: cultural (those passed down) and individual (those we concoct). While I’m sure mom inherited many of these, I think she also made some up to torment us:
If you leave the house and then forget something and have to go back in, sit down and count to 10.
If there’s a tree directly outside your front door, hang a small mirror from the door to deflect bad spirits.
If you drop a spoon, a woman will visit you. A knife, a man will visit. A fork, it’s anyone’s guess.
Don’t cut a baby’s nails until he is able to talk. A parent should bite them off instead; otherwise the child’s speech will be affected.
When giving someone a new purse, put a quarter in it so they may always prosper.
If bird poop falls on you, don’t wipe it off right away. Instead, consider yourself fortunate. (Which is a difficult thing to think about as it’s drying into a crust on your skin.)
Never let anyone hand you anything with a point on it (scissors, knives); it severs the relationship. Let them put it on the table instead and you can pick it up.
If someone gives you a present with sharp points, give them a penny for each point to avoid a rift. Ditto if you are the recipient.
Don’t pick up a tails-up penny. You can turn it over without letting the edge of the coin stop touching the floor, and let someone else pick it up, however.
If you’ve lost something, stick a pin in a piece of wood and pray to St. Anthony, patron saint of lost things. Then say, “St. Anthony, St. Anthony, come out of the ground. Something is lost that must be found.”
Having trouble selling a house? Bury a statue of St. Joseph in the ground.
Spiders that come out to greet you are good luck; do not kill them.
If your left palm itches, it means money. If your right palm itches, you will get a slap.
And that’s only a partial list. Add to those the superstitions I’ve gathered – like it’s bad luck to whistle in a newsroom, from the time when teletype machines announced bulletins with a tone that journalists feared would be drowned out by whistling- and you have an idea of my burden.
Someday, I hope to be able to take that pair of scissors being handed to me. But I’m just not ready to take the chance.
Barbara Ellis is news editor of the editorial page. She can be reached at 303-954-1751 or bellis@denverpost.com.
To each (more of) his own superstitions
It’s not just Barbara Ellis who worries about weird things she can’t control. Here are some more of her folksy fears – and a few from her friends:
A bird in the house is a sign of death.
Having trouble selling a house? Bury a statue of St. Joseph in the ground.
Don’t open an umbrella indoors.
Always leave the house by the same door you entered it.
If you knock over a salt shaker, take a pinch in your palm and throw it over your left shoulder.
When passing a hay truck, make a wish and don’t look back.
Chuck from Las Vegas recounted some superstitions surrounding gambling: If the dice go off the table in craps, you have to yell for the same dice. If the dice hit anything but the table, take your bets down. And don’t ever say “good luck” if you’re gambling – that’s giving your luck away.
Some Japanese keep their belly button covered when asleep – and when thunder rumbles – because something might come and steal it.
An Italian man remembers his father staying up all night with the body of his 12-year-old brother so the devil could not enter the body while everyone was asleep.
In the theater, saying “good luck” is bad luck. It’s “break a leg.”
Sports, of course, is full of ’em. Avalanche fans know that Patrick Roy would never step on the blue line between periods. Football nut Dan says that if you’re wearing the orange Broncos shirt and the team wins, you have to wear the same shirt for the next game.
To each his own for bad luck
Many folks have their own superstitions. A sampling:
Pete, a Greek, says it’s bad luck to drink to somebody’s health with coffee because it is traditionally served after funerals.
Demetria learned this in Girl Scouts: If you put your elbows on the table during a meal, you kill a fairy.
Co-worker Robert was told that every time he went through a yellow light, he should knock the number of letters in the name of someone he hoped to be his future wife on his windshield. (He swears this worked.)
Colleague Ray says that if you look at a clock and it’s either 1:11 or 11:11, make a wish or something bad will happen. If you go over railroad tracks in a car, put your hands on the roof and lift your feet off the floor or it’s back luck. (Of course, we don’t recommend the driver doing this).
Regina says that if you drop a dishcloth on the floor, pick it up and shake it immediately or you’ll get unwelcome company. Also, putting your purse on the floor in a restaurant is bad for your finances.
– Barbara Ellis
