SUPERSTITIONS

“I’m not superstitious, but I am a little stitious,” a quote from Michael Scott in The Office.

Almost everybody close to me lives by very specific patterns. Some people must have a cup of coffee before doing anything (me), or can’t leave the house wearing matching socks (also me), but how far do superstitions actually go?

I grew up in the States always hearing about the ones like “Step on a crack and break your mother’s back.” I’ve also learned the superstition of not walking under ladders or spilling salt. Pretty standard, right?

Then today, on a three hour phone call with my Aunt Sarah, my tití, we got onto the topic of hair cuts, then about unlucky hair dye situations, then about bad luck and superstitions in general. My tití grew up on the East Coast and learned a lot about Latinx heritage from Abuela. My dad tells me a great deal about what he remembers because he supports me, but he also doesn’t remember a lot. He moved away from the family when he was 12, and thus left everything Latinx behind except his last name.

Everything I know about being Puerto Rican is what I’ve learned from her. And today, that meant superstitions. Please note these are the things she learned from Abuela, who had a very traditional mindset. Some of these superstitions have changed!

The Ocean

Ocean waves crashing into a rocky shore.

Abuela was terrified of the ocean. I found this to be quite strange considering she grew up on an island. She always taught her kids to keep distance between themselves and the water. She told them to respect the ocean and to not go in it. She’d probably be furious about me swimming with dolphins a few years back. Sorry, not sorry!

Cats

Black cat in an alleyway.

I’m not a cat person. Never have been. But my abuela? She thought they were pure evil.

I assume most places have the black cat superstition, but for Abuela, it was more of a phobia. Tití told me she overheard a neighbor tell Abuela a story where some lady idolized her cat, yet one day, that cat betrayed her and slit her throat in her sleep. Not gonna lie, that makes me distrust feline antics a lot more!

Salt and Brooms

Broom and dustpan.

Some people believe in blessing a living space with holy water or sage, but my abuela believed that you should go the extra mile: leave your salt and broom behind when you move! Taking the old salt and broom with you to a new place would bring the bad luck and misfortune from the old house to the new one. I guess that makes sense for the broom with the literal dirt from the old house, but the salt? Not sure about that one.

More Brooms

Another broom and dustpan.

Not only could you not bring your old broom to a new house, but you also couldn’t let it touch your feet. If you’re married. If someone else was doing the sweeping. This supposedly spells out a bad future for that partnership. I don’t know about you, but I’d just be happy someone was helping me clean!

Purses

Small worn out leather purse.

I keep my wallet and purse close to me out in public, so I don’t really have to worry about this one, but Spanish superstition says that it’s bad luck to set your purse on the ground. For obvious reasons related to thieving, that makes sense, but according to my titi, a purse on the ground will bring bad financial luck in general. Glad to know my door hook is a safer option for my bag.

Shoes

Old pair of women’s black leather boots.

Lastly, there are to be no shoes stored under the bed. I never would have thought to do this, as my shoes stay in a shoe rack by the door, so I thought this one was particularly odd. This superstition translates to a similar message as the “step on a crack and break your mother’s back” from earlier.

Woman making a phone call. Photo by Hannah Wei on Unsplash

I called my dad tonight to tell him all of the things I’d learned, and he remembered Abuela placing her shoes near the foot of the bed but never under it. He had always wondered why she did that. I’m glad I got to teach him something new considering all he has taught me.

Superstitions are so strange, so you tell me, what do you think about superstitions? Do you have an updated version of these superstitions? Do you know their origin stories? Do you know the Spanish phrases for them? Do you have superstitions not listed here that you’d like to add?

Comment below! And be sure to subscribe if you’d like to stay up-to-date on my learning!