I’m not a very superstitious person but I do like some of the “folk beliefs” that have come down to us over the years – black cats crossing our paths, knocking wood, finding a four-leaf clover. Like most of us, I give lip-service to a number of superstitious beliefs, almost as an automatic response, but I seldom register the occasion or pay attention to whether the omen came true. Take broken mirrors, for instance. I’m sure I should have had several seven-year periods of bad luck in my life, but if so I haven’t noticed.
One of my favorites has to do with dropped silverware. If it’s a fork, a woman is coming to visit, a knife means a man is on his way, and if you drop a spoon, get ready for a visit from a child. I had never heard of that superstition before I married Nyel who had learned it from his mother. But like all the others, I never think about it once I’ve said, “Oh, we’re going to have a visit from a woman today!” So do we or don’t we get that visit? And is there a time limit as to when it will happen?
Another saying from Nyel’s mom: if you pee in the street, you’ll get a sty in your eye. Makes you wonder where these ideas come from, doesn’t it? And it certainly makes you want to avoid getting a sty!