A superstition is a belief or notion that is not based on reason or knowledge. Most superstitions result from ignorance, fear of the unknown, or trust in magic or chance. Will saying “white rabbit” on the first day of the month bring you good luck for the rest of the month? What is supposed to happen if an owl gets inside your house?
Have you ever stepped in dog crap and thought it good luck? No? Me neither. But if you live in France and step in that disgusting pile of stinky stuff with your left foot, it is considered good luck. But if you step in it with your right foot, it’s bad luck. Either way, you still have to wash the dog poo off your shoe.
Birds are all around us, and it’s hard to avoid seeing them, hearing their beautiful songs, or having some sort of encounter with them. Most of us prefer to not have them defecate on us. But if you live in Russia and a bird directs its waste to land on you or something you own, it’s thought that it will bring you wealth.
If you are in Ireland or Scotland, seeing just one magpie is said to bring bad luck. In South Korea, the sight of just one crow, a relative of the magpie, will bring bad luck down upon you.
The marsh crake is one of New Zealand’s most secretive birds. Inhabiting dense woodland vegetation, the marsh crake rarely ventures out into the open. It only calls out at dawn or dusk and throughout the night. If you hear one over your right shoulder, it is considered good luck. However, if you hear one over your left shoulder, it will lead to bad luck.
Owls are beautiful birds, but they have obtained a reputation for bringing bad luck. In Egypt, it is thought that if you see or hear an owl, bad news is coming your way.
I’ve had a bat get in my attic and fly down into my house before. And a baby bird once fell through a hole in my bathroom ceiling (we think) and somehow made it past nine cats and into my kitchen. I found this baby bird, who had walked, hopped, or flown through the valley of the shadow of death, perched on the top of a Cream of Wheat tin on the back of my stove. But an owl has not once made it into my house. In Italy, if an owl somehow gains entry to your house, it is said that someone in your family will die soon.
In Africa, owls are symbols of bad luck. If you see or hear one, it could bring just bad luck or it could result in poor health or death. In Harry Potter, owls delivered mail, but some believe that owls are sent to deliver curses.
This superstition is said to be from Britain and North America—I am from North America but lived in Britain for a short time—but it’s one I’ve never heard of. If you say “rabbit rabbit” or “white rabbit” on the first day of the month, it ensures good luck for that month.
I have heard that a rabbit’s foot is supposed to bring one good luck, but what I didn’t know is that it has to be the left hind foot to be lucky.
Writing Prompt:
Choose one of the above superstitions and write a story about how you think it began. For example, did an owl mistakenly get in someone’s house and not long after someone died? I’m sure the owl didn’t fly inside on purpose, but maybe in your story, it did. Could the owl have been on a mission?
