7.14.2012

May 13, 2012

White Dog sat next to me and commented, "Isn't Friday the 13th supposed to be unlucky?" "Some think," I replied. "Why?" We were working together and I paused to turn to her. "It doesn't feel different. And everybody is happy. And even though you are working on the computer instead of a canvas, what we are creating seems inspired. Those hardly seem like bad things"

"Well, Little One, I believe that we each make our own luck in a way. If you keep a positive attitude and take challenges in stride, I think that you are never truly beaten. By focusing on the moment and not spiraling into the fear that comes with 'what-ifs' you draw strength and calm and balance from a Universe that I believe wants good efforts to succeed." "It sounds like you are talking about hopeful living, momma," my wise girl said. "Not just hope..." I started and WD finished with, "...but active, participatory putting that hope to work! I've been listening, momma!"

"But I still do not understand why humans would pick a number and a day and turn them into such a dark combination," WD said as she shook her head. "Bad news can come on the 20th...or you can drop your favorite vase on the 4th...or you can burn dinner on the 18th and nobody thinks twice but if it happens on the 13th and it happens to also be Friday, everyone nods knowingly like of course it happened today! It is pretty weird."

"As smart as humans claim to be, we sometimes attach a significance to a thing or a date that really is random and then use every coincidental event that happens as proof that there is a connection. There really isn't but if you try you can make anything seem joined...like saying Michael has to wear his glasses on school days because his eyes don't work well...duh! he wears glasses EVERY DAY including school days but if just focus on the school days part you could build up an entire superstition about avoidi school because it makes you wear glasses." "That is REALLY dumb," WD woofed. I ruffled her furs in agreement.

So here is the story of why Friday the 13th is considered an unlucky, bad day:

In North America and Europe, a significant portion of the population behaves very strangely on Friday the 13th. They won't fly in airplanes, host a party, apply for a job, get married or even start a new project. Some people won't even come into work. In the United States, roughly 8 percent of the population is afraid of Friday the 13th, a condition known as paraskevidekatriaphobia. "Friday the 13th" as we know it has its roots in many traditions and cultures.

The superstition surrounding Friday the 13th is actually a combination of two separate fears -- the fear of the number 13, called triskaidekaphobia, and the fear of Fridays. The most familiar source of both these phobias is Christian theology. Thirteen is significant to Christians because it is the number of people who were present at the Last Supper (Jesus and his 12 apostles). Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th member of the party to arrive.

Christians have traditionally been wary of Fridays because Jesus was crucified on a Friday. In addition to that, some theologians hold that Adam and Eve ate from the forbidden fruit on a Friday, and that the Great Flood began on a Friday. In the past, many Christians would never begin any new project or trip on a Friday, for fear that the endeavor would be doomed from the start.

Some trace the infamy of the number 13 back to ancient Norse culture. In Norse mythology, the beloved hero Balder was killed at a banquet by the malevolent god Loki, who crashed the party of twelve, bringing the group to 13. This story, as well as the story of the Last Supper, led to one of the most entrenched connotations of the number 13: You should never sit down to a meal in a group of 13.

Another significant part of the Friday-the-13th legend is a particularly bad Friday the 13th that occurred in the middle ages. On a Friday the 13th in 1306, King Philip of France burned the revered Knights Templar at the stake, marking the occasion as a day of evil.

Some people come to fear Friday the 13th because of misfortune they've experienced on that day in the past. If you get in a car wreck on one Friday the 13th, or lose your wallet, that day is bound to stay with you. But if you think about it, bad things (from spilling your coffee to, well, much more serious problems) happen all the time, so if you're looking for bad luck on Friday the 13th, you'll probably find it.  Thanks to How Stuff Works, http://people.howstuffworks.com/question614.htm for this enlightening look at yet another odd human trait.

6 comments:

Brian's Home Blog said...

I did not know any of that, thanks for telling me! I think every Friday is lucky regardless of the date!

Dachshund Nola said...

That's very cool info!
Nola

Bailey Be Good! said...

Friday was just another day for me! :) :)

Hope you're doing well, friends!

Woofs & huggies, <3

~Bailey (Yep, I'm a girl!)

Asta said...

Deew White doggies
youw Mama is so wight and hew advices and thoughts awe aways pawfect..we have to make ouw lives as good as we can, and not let stoopid numbews ow anything else tell us what kind of day to have..I'm taking yoow advice and will be much bettew at this(I hope)
smoochie kisses
ASTA

D.K. Wall said...

And then, in China, the number 13 is considered lucky. And we all love Fridays because that is the start of the weekend.

KB said...

I once had back surgery on a Friday the 13th! Ha, now that's crazy, isn't it?

Actually, this Friday wasn't good but I'm pretty sure that it had nothing to do with the date. We had a very sobering day with K...

I'm with you that these superstitions are silly except when they're my own personal ones. Today (the 15th) is the date that my Acadia died 9 years ago. Because of K's condition, I feel fearful about this date...

I hope that you are having a good weekend and that Mighty Quinn is still doing well.