Hocus Pocus

When I first set out on a personal experiment to see whether or not being superstitious actually had a prominent effect on my life, I had no idea the journey of superstitions is one long and winding road.

We have the Elizabethan times to thank for most of the evil, omens and all round awful luck that is apparently waiting to pounce on us. They did not like to tempt fate.

Aim - To dis-prove superstitions by creating a situation where one would use a superstition and then purposely not using it to see what happens.

Method - In my day-to-day life, when an opportunity arises that I think I may invite bad luck by saying or thinking something I shouldn't, I simply do it anyway.

Then I wait and see if a piano falls on my head.

I started off small first, stating (out loud) that work was slow and boring and I wasn't going to get any busier - the result, I was correct.

Then I got a little more of my game on by verbally acknowledging "wow, there's a bit of traffic here, perhaps this is a sign of a very slooooow drive into the city" - the result, the traffic was due to a broken down car and cleared up once I was passed it.

I was on a streak kicking superstition in the butt when this time I decided to toy with my dating life.

I was hoping a certain somebody would call and seeing as I'd been right so far I purposely thought that they wouldn't call and I'd be disappointed - the result, of course they didn't call, and yes, I was disappointed - I had jinxed it.

Conclusion - After a series of experiments I was able to reach the satisfying conclusion that being superstitious is a bunch of hoo-hah nonsense. "Touch Wood", "don't jinx it", its all bollocks.

Yes, I was beaten on occasion but only because of my powerful mind. It's tough to try to think about something bad happening just so you can prove yourself right. I've always been a big believer in the power of the mind so this probably hindered my experiment.

Another factor that I would be ridiculous not to point out would be that there are 'x' many variables in this experiment that nobody would be able to control. And it is for this reason my study has proven my Aim true.

If people believe that saying "God Bless You" will stop demons entering your body when you sneeze or walking under ladders and seeing black cats will cause bad things to happen then my message is simple - how can one action affect so many aspects of life?

This being so, I can understand that being superstitious allows a person to feel more comfortable and more in control of a situation - just in case.

Even though I stick by my conclusion of it all being a bunch of Hocus Pocus, I don't think I am ready to risk human or animal life just yet.

It's been a pleasure - and for me too ;)