Lucky Rain

Are you superstitious? 

I used think superstitions were silly old wives’ tale that parents used to “scare” their kids into behaving well.

My mother was extremely superstitious, everyday she would chime out some kind of warning or reminder. Below are some that I will never forget. 

☞ An apple a day keeps the doctor away.

☞ If a black cat crosses your path, you will have bad luck.

☞ Break a mirror and you will have bad luck for seven years.

☞ Eat your crust. It is good for you and it is the best part of the bread.

☞ If you eat raw potatoes, you will get worms.

☞ It is bad luck if a bird flies into your house.

☞ Never put new shoes on a table. If you do, you are welcoming death into the   family.

☞ Don’t walk under a ladder.

☞ If you kill a spider, it will rain.

☞ If you spill salt, you must throw some over your left shoulder to avoid bad luck.  

☞ If you swallow your gum, it will stick to your ribs.

☞The number 13 is bad luck. I don’t know why, she never explained it.

☞ Never EVER open an umbrella in the house.

☞ If a bird poops on you, you will have good luck.

 

Why blog about superstitions when I have two deadlines just around the corner?

Last night, while at my son’s football practice, a mom was blessed by a bird. Yep … it pooped on her.  

Immediately, I said, “That’s a sign of good luck.”

Then my mind screamed, Why would I say that? Why is it good? Oh my God, I have become my mother!

For the remainder of practice, I continued to wonder.

❧ How did those superstitions begin?

❧ Who were those old wives’?

❧ And, were they drinking when they started those tales?

Today, I dug a little deeper and found (some) reasonable answers.

The bird bomb is “apparently” a one in a million shot. Nearly the same odds as picking winning lottery numbers.

Did it rain luck or did that bird decide it wanted to be a quarterback and that mom was the receiver?

It makes sense since we were at a football practice. Maybe the bird was wrapped up in the excitement of the scrimmage?

Personally, if it was raining luck, I don’t think it’s the kind of luck I would want. 

I think a horseshoe would be much better than a bird bomb.

That is, as long as the horseshoe is not flying at my head. :)

Which brings me back to my original question, are you superstitious? 

If so ... do you think it was lucky rain, and should that mom buy a lottery ticket?

If it is lucky then oh how I wish my truck could talk and give me the winning numbers. 

The birds have been blessing my truck with luck daily!

Do you recall any "warnings" that are not on the above list? If so, please share.

As always, comments and feedback are welcome with open arms and closed umbrellas (when indoors)!