Superstition is Magical
Thinking
Most of us grew up with superstitions. A few of
my childhood favorites are seven years of bad luck for breaking
a mirror, bad luck for walking under a ladder, opening an umbrella
indoors and having a black cat cross my path will also produce
bad luck. I have heard of athletes that have to wear a certain
pair of socks or have a lucky coin in their pocket when they
play "the big game." The truth is we all have superstitions.
As my sister and I move through the process of
selling our childhood home, we were brainstorming ways to move
the sale along. I remembered that a friend buried a statue of
St. Joseph in her front yard to expedite the sale of her home.
The house sold quickly. My sister thought I was nuts when I
suggested this to her. But we found out that a lot of people
share this superstition when we got on the Internet. There is
even a St. Joseph house selling kit available for purchased.
I have no idea if burying St. Joseph really works or if it works
because people believe it works, and I have to wonder if it
matters. Thoughts are things and what we think becomes what
we believe and what we believe becomes reality.
Superstitions are not really silly and can actually
be helpful if not just a little amusing. Superstitions are also
rich in tradition and folklore. The concept of burying the St.
Joseph statue comes from stories of nuns placing St. Joseph
medals on property they wanted for the convent. The tradition
evolved into the statue concept. Many traditions date way back,
and some are personal ones we create. I have created many superstitions
of my own. Since I only believe in good luck I believe it is
lucky when a black cat or any animal crosses my path. I still
recite the poem "See a penny pick it up. All day you'll
have luck" anytime I see a penny lying on the ground. Superstitions
can be fun and helpful as long as we believe they are.
According to the Internet, a superstition is "A
set of behaviors that are related to magical thinking, whereby
the practitioner believes that the future, or the outcome of
certain events, can be influenced by certain specified behaviors."
I love the idea of magical thinking. So to create superstitions
is to think magically. To my way of thinking superstitions are
a way to create magic. And who doesn't want a little magic in
their life?
Coach Rachelle Disbennett-Lee, PhD provides daily motivation,
information and inspiration to thousands of busy self development
enthusiast who want to stay focused and on track to their goals
through her award winning e-zine 365 Days of Coaching. For a
free report, "The Power of Daily Action - How to create
more Wealth, Health and Happiness by Tapping Into the Power
of Daily Action" go to http://www.365daysofcoaching.com/daily_action.htm.
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2005 True Direction, Inc.
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