Where and when did superstitions originate
Superstitions have been around for a long time. I would venture to say for as long as intelligent humans have. I leave the definition of intelligent up to you. Personally, I think superstitions are stupid even though most of them were started by intelligent, i.e., educated individuals. I wonder how such educated individuals could actually believe in such foolery, although I suspect most go through motions out of habit or to show proper educate. My present wife is among this group, more about her later.
Some of my antics with superstitions
For as long as I can remember, I have never believed in superstitions, I think. As a child I defied them and I still do. Maybe that stemmed from my defiant nature, or because I was shy or just acting like the clown I was, i.e., doings things to draw attention. I laughed at people who ran away to keep from walking over the path of a black cat. I chased after the cat. Whenever I came upon a ladder leaning against a wall, I passed under it, not once but several times. As for breaking mirrors, I broke them deliberately and then stomped on them. I opened umbrellas in the house even though I knew I would receive a clout upside the head or, at least, a good scolding. What better way of being noticed? I nailed up horse shoes the opposite way, maybe to welcome the devil in or to show I didn’t need any good luck. I made my own luck. The number thirteen is my lucky number.
At one time I used to hunt four leaf clovers, not that I felt they would bring me good luck, but they were thought to be scarce. I think the idea of them being scarce is wrong too. I used to find hundreds of them each year. Maybe the patches of clovers behind my house had a high percentage of the freak clover leafs. I placed them in books and gave them away. One thing for certain, they never brought me any luck.
Come to think of it, maybe these are the reasons I am where I am. Nah, I’m pretty much where I want to be, a poor dumb slob coasting along with the wave. I’m neither rich nor poor, neither extremely happy nor sobbingly sad. I’m an average Joe who doesn’t bother or rely on anyone. I’ve made my bed and now I’m lying in it. Ok let’s move forward.
Some of my wife’s superstitions, bless her soul
Take my wife, please. Wow, I can’t believe I did that. My present wife, number three, is a good sole, educated and intelligent. Why she accepted my proposal, I’ll never know. She is religious, in a strange way, and she has many odd superstitions. She believes in spirits, good ones and bad ones. She has a string of bells on our front door to keep the bad spirits from entering. I never pointed out our three other doors that lacked strings of bells. Do spirits use only the front entrance?
On the dresser in our bedroom, she keeps a shot glass, always filled with water for any thirsty good spirits. If we leave the house for more than a day, she goes to each room and blesses it to keep out any bad spirits. She blesses her two sons each time they leave after a visit. I think I’m jealous; she has never blessed me. Maybe that’s a good thing; she’s well aware of my nonreligious beliefs. Maybe she thinks I might explode in a ball of flame.
Once I caught her opening an umbrella in the house so it could dry. I feigned wide eyed disbelief and asked her if she didn’t believe bad luck would rain upon us for this act? She had never heard of such a foolish belief. But then, she does come from a foreign and odd culture. Bless her soul.
Another strange thing she does after mentioning something bad that might happen, she does a little thing that’s like pretending to spit three times to nullify what she just said. It’s means the same as knocking on wood three times. The first time she did this, I thought she was choking
When I find a coin lying on the ground, I pick it up and put it in my pocket feeling fortunate I was recouping some of my lost coins. I pay no attention to weather it was heads or tails facing up. Not my wife. She rubs it between her fingers and blesses it. She says if you don’t do that, you end up with all the misfortunes of the person who lost the coin. I always give her the coins I find if she is with me. She goes through her rigmarole and puts it in her purse. Bless her soul. I just smile and shake my head.
Anyway, do you get the idea of what I’m trying to get across? Superstitions, most of which have religious beginnings are what you make of them. Observing some of my wife’s strange superstitions, Bless her soul, for she is not one of the blind faith followers. I imagine firm believers are loaded down with them. You know if you say bless their soul, after saying something derogatory about someone, you are forgiven?
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