Are You Superstitious?

"Do you believe in superstitions? Do you own any lucky charms, such as an old horse shoe or a rabbit's foot? Do you always put coins in a purse or wallet before giving it as a gift? Do you knock on wood or cross your fingers for luck? If you said yes to any of these questions, it could be said that your are superstitious."

This is the hook from the lens titled Popular Superstitions from Northern England written by GiftsBonanza a.k.a. Tracy. It hooked me! I love finding new information about the origin of sayings, folklore and superstitions. That intro paragraph, along with the charming graphic of a frazzled black cat, hooked me into reading this lens.

She explains she became interested in superstitions after meeting her Lancashire bred husband and then recently finding some old 19th century books that included superstitions, folklore and local customs of that area of England.

The body of the lens is where she highlights 5 of the superstitions uncovered in the books. She does it with style and a winning recipe of fact, history and a good measure of humor. The first one concerns fire and the burning of ones' hair to determine how long one will live. Following the explanation of how to read the flame, her humorous voice showed up. She says:

"Important Health Warning
We do not recommend that you try this at home. However, for the person who is silly enough to try, please make sure that the hair is no longer attached to your head, otherwise it could be seriously painful.

I nearly fell out of my chair.

The lens is also interactive giving the reader the chance to spout off whether superstitions are true or a bunch of bunk. The remainder of the lens explains 4 other superstitions dealing with more fire, burning ears, lucky coins and manicures and pedicures -- believe it or not. I learned something new.

I found this lens while flitting around on my angel wings looking for lenses to bless. I'm glad I did. What I actually found was the intriguing voice of a writer I will follow in the future. Though Tracy has been a member for more than a year, she had taken a hiatus and only recently came back. To date she has 23 lenses. She plans to go full bore in 2011 and I will happily follow along on her Squidoo journey -- reading what she writes and enjoying it.

Image Credit: i believe in lucky charms by believe_in