Watercolor on paper. Copyright 2011 Totsymae
By nature, I wouldn’t call myself a superstitious person but the fact that I’ve heard a few sayings, I’ve managed to fit them into my little life in a small way, still, with a steadfast belief that superstitious, I am not.
Now, my mother, bless her heart, was raised on a good number of them. Born and raised in the south, what other choice did she have? She told my sister and me, years back, that she’d not instill those kinda thoughts by raising us on them. Yet, she ran down a list of them and I can’t get them out of my head. Naturally, I want to believe the good ones. Like, if your hand itches, you’ve got some money coming. Who wouldn’t want their hand to itch in that case?
My great-grandmother said if you walked with one shoe on and the other off, it was a sign of bad luck. So you know I fear walking with one shoe on to this day? I tell you folks, I’m all discombobulated with these superstitions rattling in my head sometimes. Here are just a few of them:
- A man needs to be the first one to come to your home on New Year’s Day to bring good luck. Let me tell you, folks. The then husband would get up on said day, do a little something out the doors and then come back. Now, I’d never heard tale of that ’til I married Then Husband. I never quite got that if he’s already in the house, why he had to walk out and come back? Wasn’t it enough that he lived there already? I’m not sold on this one. Shit, sometimes it’s good luck if a man leaves the house and never comes back.
- On New Year’s Day, a meal of collard greens and black-eyed peas would bring good luck. See, the collards were for money and the peas were so you could have a discerning eye for the future. I think that’s how it went. Folks, I ain’t seen no more than I’ve always seen really. Only time and experience has helped me to know what’s good and ain’t good for me. I ain’t picked up no extraordinary psychic powers to this day. And money? I work, therefore, I get paid. Did I necessarily have to eat greens to know the paycheck was coming? Plus, I’ve never heard no lottery winner claiming to have eaten them some collards to win the jackpot. Shit, they just played the hell out of them numbers is what happened. This one I picked up from the then in-laws when I lived in Texas. It didn’t quite stick but I may have such a meal for good measure.
- If your nose itches, somebody’s coming to your house. If you don’t feel like being bothered, you’d hate to have a nose itch but I’m telling you folks, every time that’s ever happened, somebody always ended up coming to my house.
- If your ear itches, somebody’s talking about you. Then, I’d go to wondering who the hell could have me on their minds to be talking about me.
- Laying a hat on the bed brings bad luck. That’s another one I learned through Then Husband. I don’t particularly have a thing for hats but with this in my head, I’m careful that a head scarf ain’t laying around on my bed, folks. I’m telling you, this shit’s got me all messed up.
- Breaking a mirror will bring seven years of bad luck. I may or may not have done it but maybe one could curtail bad fate by eating some collards and black-eyed peas?
- Dropping a dish rag on the floor will bring death to a family member. Folks, you should see me trying to catch a damn dish rag falling to the floor. A baseball player sliding to home plate ain’t got shit on me.
- If you walk between two poles, your mama’s gonna have a big tit and a little one. This one I got from my cousins growing up. Now, you could correct the fate of your mama’s tits by walking back in reverse order. I was in elementary school when I was enlightened to this one and making sure I didn’t cut the poles. I think I used to check my mama’s tits from time to time too. Making sure I hadn’t screwed up her tatas and all.
I’m sure I could call off a few more but will end it here. Maybe I should see what my co-pay is for therapy and get myself some help. So, any of you out there stuck with a few superstitions in your head? Show and tell, folks.
One last thing to share. Zahir from Just Simply in Love nominated me as Best Entertainment Blog. Here’s the link to vote for me. ‘Preciate it. 
And thank you, Zahir.
I'm an artist who's writing,mothering, blogging and doing a few other things under the sun. I buy toilet paper 99.9% of every trip I make to the grocery store. I'm a people watcher, so I know you're here but drop me a line anyway.
Being a Scot, I know all about the tradition (superstition) surrounding the ‘first fit’ (1st person to cross your threshold after the new year is ushered in)
To bring luck, he had to be male, dark-haired, and carrying a lump of coal for the fire, a bottle of whisky, and a piece of ‘black bun’ (a type of rich fruit cake) – the gifts were a kind of sympathetic magic, to ensure the household had food, drink, and fuel enough to see them through the coming year.
When I was a kid my sister and I got to stay up late on Hogmany (Dec 31st) and at 5 minutes to midnight I would be put out the house with the coal, whisky and black bun and not allowed back in until after midnight had struck. It was a cheat of a sort but it was intended to ensure we didn’t get caught out by a woman or a fair-haired man being 1st to cross our threshold in the New Year. [Sometimes the buggers forgot I was out there and I would be left hammering on the door and yelling through the letter-box while they partied inside. They claimed it was an accident - but I had my suspicions !]
Another tradition we had at New Year, and it’s one I still follow, is that the house and everyone in it had to be spotlessly clean for the New Year. The whole family was roped in on Dec 31st to make sure every room was spotless and we all had to have a bath, wash our hair, and put clean clothes on ready for the bells to ring out at midnight .
I find the whole superstition thing interesting, really. The Chinese have
interesting ones that tells a story much like what you shared here. I’ve
learned a bit about Scottish superstitions now. Thanks for sharing.
Now I think You need to leave Taiwan ASAP……..
But this was something I picked up in the south mostly, in the
states.
oh God, I can’t imagine in states. I like stevie Wonder though….
Islam has no place for superstitions. Praying for others is not bad. Yes, dua at certain moments are supposed to be more likely to be accepted. Usually it is at those times when one happens to be emotionally closer to his creator. Certain days like Friday are also supposed to be more auspicious for good deeds. However, things like cat crossing the path or travelling in certain directions only on certain days, or bad omen for looking a one eyed person in early morning is unknown in Islam. Good deed is encouraged but people or events are not believed to be inauspicious and no body is allowed to spread hate or contempt against others in the society for some thing which is not in their control.
Believing in such things is really as Stevie Wonder says. I think it’s so deeply
embedded in the south that it’s paralyzing. Like, I remember one where the
former in-laws said if you leave the house and turn back around, bad luck.
Well, once the sis-in-law did it to get her jacket. The mom was insisting she
keep leaving the house. Then Husband made Sis go back anyway ’cause.
Sis broke down in her car later and turned out she needed the jacket for the
weather. Then Mom-In-Law could say nothing to that. It’s crazy in my little
world.
In today’s world it is we have knowledge and have stronger faith in ourselves which makes us slightly better due to the fact as human discovers more knowledge it s difficult to accept the challenge. For me life is the biggest challenge which is how we all live. How to save life’s as the life span is gone shorter. This all hocuspocas what it does just generate another kind of fear which is doubt and etc.
My simple thumb rule is logic and fact is very important. something which is might happen or will happen its that i dont look. yep if building a cable bridge or cable stay bridge or a via duct then we assume that kind of theory to avoid man made desaster which may save and damage to the structure of the bridge etc. The example that you mentioed they are present in every home enviroment oneway or another. it is difficult to make people understand. dont worry it is not going away from anyones world that easy.
Just thought I’d share my findings. I was kinda curious since writing about
the topic.
“Determining the origins of superstitions is largely a matter of guesswork;
some are so old that their origins are lost in the mists of time.
“[Some] superstitions are based on sound sense — don’t put hats on beds
(head lice), don’t walk under ladders (something might fall), cover your
mouth when you sneeze (don’t spread germs). They were often used to teach
as it was easier to scare someone into doing or not doing something than
to use lengthy explanations — especially for
children,” says Alice Wood (ace76_wood@hotmail.com).
Superstition can be defined as the irrational belief in the existence
of unseen forces (frequently thought of as evil spirits) controlling
people’s fates or the outcomes of events, usually with negative effects,
unless particular actions are taken to prevent the ill effects or to
produce the desired good effects; this may involve a person’s behaviors
and actions, avoidance of actions, places, etc., or the use of amulets, etc.
Many educated, intelligent people still hold on to a variety of superstitions,
almost as though they are cherished traditions of a sort. If you ask them, when it
gets right down to the nitty-gritty, they don’t actually believe in something, yet
they still act upon the belief. Very strange…”
Reference:
http://sangi.sanguinarius.org/creative/OriginsOfPopularSuperstitions.pdf
I’m pretty klutzy in the kitchen, so that may explain the recent spate of deaths in my family (if you include a wider definition of family than mere blood relatives).
Cute post that got me thinking about some of my grandmother’s beliefs–like blackberry brandy will cure anything from a constipation to diarrhea!
Oh, I remember a few home remedies too. Seemed like, at least for
people in my family, there was less sickness with the potions those
grandmother designed.
i got $5 on your therapy session =) xoxo
$5.00!! Well, bless Bess, I’m officially open for business!
Monday morning coffee break with Totsy Mae. No finer place to be.
“Shit, sometimes it’s good luck if a man leaves the house and never comes back.” Almost lost a perfectly good cup of coffee over that one. LOL!
I’ll have to think back to some of my gramma’s superstitions. Ethnic Italian immigrants are full of them – in fact they are full of a lot of stuff…
I’ve bet you’ve got some interesting ones. Seems like no matter where
people are from in the world, they have superstitions that ran through
their family.
Oops, sorry about the coffee but I’m sure there’s more of where it
came from.
I can’t stop wondering how alike we all are. If I can tell you all the superstitions my Russian Jewish Grandma told me and to my surprise I believe in almost all of them. How stupid of me!
Funny thing “If you walk between two poles, your mama’s gonna have a big tit and a little one” I think we have the same cousin, I got the same thing from mine when I was 10 years old and he was 15…..
I’d never thought the splitting the poles superstition went beyond
the south. It was in Russia too? Goodness! And yes, believing
them makes me feel a tad stupid too.
I just love your blogs. My day would not be the same without it in my mailbox. I have forwarded so many of them on and I post them to My Life.’s face book page. Your blog has been awarded The Versatile Blogger Award. I hope you accept it. Please visit my blog for details. Thanks. Donna
http://mylife-in-stories.blogspot.com
Thank you for the award and glad to know the blog posts tickle your
I’ll visit to check out the award. Thanks again.
fancy.
Ha! This sounds JUST LIKE MY FAMILY. I am from Houston, so we definitely have the whole southern superstition thing going on down here. We always eat black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day. The part that really made me laugh was when you said it was bad luck to walk with one shoe on and one shoe off. My grandmother DOES that! She doesn’t do it on purpose, though. She takes one shoe off as she sits cross legged and then gets up to go do something and doesn’t put it back on. Ha! I don’t think it’s caused her too much bad luck yet. Just a dirty sock.
It’s funny how these superstitions have been passed along from state
to state and country to country. Now that I think of it, I’ve never told
any to my kids. What a relief! The madness won’t be passed along
to their children, at least not from my side.
Well, Totsy, I tried to vote for you. I set up my account, it was done right, and then I tried to vote. The site let me put in my user name, but wouldn’t let me move on to put in my password. There is some fool kind of glitch.
Step on a crack, break your mother’s poor back. Step on a line, break your mother’s poor spine.
Don’t walk under ladders, don’t let anyone sweep under your feet or you’ll never get married, always say “bread and butter” if you walk around something with a friend in different ways. Oh Lord! I could go on and on, but I won’t. I don’t want to fill your purty haid with even more of this nonsense!
I’ll try a little later to vote. If it don’t work, I’ll email the folks and tell them to fix their shit.
Thank you for trying to vote.
Oooh, I have heard the one about stepping on cracks. I was trying
to remember the one about the broom but it didn’t stick, apparently.
Yes, they are all nonsense. Not the most practical belief system
either.
The old on about not walking under an open ladder? I do it just to throw fate off. I’m determined to buck up and not let it affect me. It’s cabbage and black eye peas down here and No! I don’t eat ‘em. I let Hubby eat enough for both of us. That stuff is just plain nasty tastin’. He keeps working and bring home the money and I’m richer than I’ve ever been so I guess it’s working.
Donna
You rebel you! Breaking the code and bucking the system!
Cabbage and peas? That doesn’t sound like a good match.
Well, you just let Mr Hubby keep right on doing what’s working
for ya. You don’t wanna mess up a good thing.
My husband and I got married on Friday the 13th a few years back. We walked the superstitious route in the children’s museum that day. We broke a mirror, stepped on pennies, walked under a ladder, walked on cracks and all round did everything we could think of.
Funny post!
Here’s another one going against the grain. Amazing that no matter
where people are from, many of us are familiar with the same
superstitions. Who in the world created these lies? LoL!
I’ve heard that if you drop a fork a man will come to your house and if you drop a spoon it will be a woman.
Can you be a bit more specific – type of spoon? Height from which to be dropped ? How long before a woman appears comes round?
Only it’s been 10 minutes now. My whole collection of spoons is lying on the floor and no sign yet of a woman – and my soup is getting cold !
lmao. For you it’s a never been used shapely silver spoon that’s easy to pick up
Never heard this one about the utensils, I don’t think. Interesting though.
Now, this is one I’ll begin remembering too.
We had many of the same superstitions too. But when our noses itched our mother always said “You’re going to kiss a fool!”. She also said if we had a thread on our clothes that that meant we would be getting an important letter. We also have a old family tradition where the girls get a ring on their sixteenth birthday so they don’t have to worry about getting one from a man. I love that one!
Kiss a fool? That’s too funny! I like the one on the ring, actually. Builds
a sense of security.
Just love the watercolour Totsymae
As to supersitions – what about shurgging off the ladder I trotted under to avoid the rain, only to have a fluffy black cat pad across my path – then moving right along 10 steps, I get pooped on big-time (by what I thought was a bloody flock of pigeons) turned out to be1 pigeon with serious diarrhea – urrgh!
Nothing unusual for 3 days one way or t’uther, then I bump into a friend, who gave me a thank you card with scratchy she’d been carrying around for 3 days, meaning to post to me.
I won $200, cheers catchul8r molly
Thank you.
What luck but the 200 bucks made up for all the bad.
I didn’t think I was superstitious but I think twice before walking under a ladder, throw a pinch of salt over my back if some drops on the floor and wonder if I’m going to win (or spend) some money when my palm itches.
Like the one with the pole — very funny! Wonder how they came about?