We are all aware of some superstitions. Most of them I find cool – and harmless.
I love the colour of pure black cats, white and orange ones a close second. One black one lived next door for a few years and even though it came over here daily I could never make up with it. It was so independent, relying on only himself.
We’ve all heard that it’s a bad omen if a black cat crosses your path, so I figured I’d start there. In the 17th century, black cats were associated with witchcraft, and people thought they were basically witches themselves, just disguised as cats. Although I think we’re smarter than 17th-century people, this association is still the main reason that black cats don’t get adopted as much as other cats.
My cousin owns a black cat. And sometimes the cat was there when I stayed overnight on occasion but It didn’t cause me bad luck. Neither has my cousin who has had the cat for some years.
Supposedly, peering at yourself in a cracked mirror breaks your soul into pieces, and because the soul is in pieces, it is not completely able to ward off evil spirits and bad luck. This is nonsense, considering the fact that the soul is unbreakable. In movies, it’s usually a woman at the stage of aging that curses that mirror for exposing her inevitability. I’m kind of klutzy as I break at least two or three dishes per month, not on purpose though. Today I was putting away the crock pot. It slipped from my hands. The glass lid shattered into a zillion pieces. I’ve been luckier with mirrors, only a handful broken over the years. Those I did, didn’t alter my life. My life stayed the very same as it was before I broke them.
Throughout the 18th century, synthetic green dyes were made with a newly discovered compound called cupric hydrogen arsenic. Though the widespread publication of arsenic in 1822 finally alerted the public to its dangers, some superstitious homeowners view green walls as a bad omen even today. The ironic thing is green is also considered good luck by many others. When I see the color green, I think of Christmas.
According to Feng-shui superstition, from “Back to the Future” movie, broken clocks are more powerful than you may think. It implies that a broken clock can stop time itself, and therefore basically leave you in the Twilight Zone for eternity. And if a broken clock chimes, it’s a form of foreshadowing your death. I can testify that neither of those is the case. For one, I have a dysfunctional wristwatch floating around my house somewhere, and I am not
living in limbo. I also have a semi-functional clock in a nearby drawer. That thing goes off randomly. I am not even close to dead.
Opening an umbrella inside a home’s anxiety goes back to ancient Egypt. If you brought anything that protects you from the weather inside, it was considered disrespectful to house spirits that do protect. If you did, such as an umbrella, the spirit’s protection becomes dubious. The resulting fear prevented people from opening umbrellas inside – even today. I have been told frequently so I just never do it.
According to Victorian superstitions, if you allow a firefly or lightning bug into your house, it means someone is going to die soon.
That sounds kind of unlikely. I live surrounded by forests and I have never seen such an insect such as a firefly in the house so I can’t vouch for this superstition.
Some superstitious people believe that hanging a horseshoe upside down will make luck fall out of it for you. That one, I’m most confident has merit.
I have seen a lot of horror movies where rocking chairs have moved on their own, so I don’t have any inside or outside of my home anymore. I had one before then and I swear I noticed it moved. I got the heck out of there. The next morning I got rid of the chair. After I did a little research on the subject I am now convinced an empty rocking chair is an invitation for ghosts to enter a home.
Gamblers are notoriously superstitious. I would never bet against them.
