My family was not particularly religious growing up, but what my mother lacked in religion, she made up for in superstitious beliefs. Not only did we have to incorporate Japanese superstitions, but American ones as well. So besides the whole 7-years-bad-luck broken mirror thing, I also couldn’t wear a new pair of shoes in the house or bunch things in four (the pronunciation for four “shi” is the same as the word for death, but I have no idea where the shoes bit came from.)

Some of the superstitions are common across different Asian cultures. For instance, sticking chopsticks upright in a rice bowl is a no-no, since that is the way rice is offered to the dead. I remember being at a function once where the dinner was supposed to be an “Asian” theme, but clearly was not decorated by an Asian because the center display at all the tables was a bowl of rice with chopsticks sticking straight out of it. There was a collective gasp as those of us who were Asian approached our tables. I quietly removed the chopsticks from my table display and I saw others do the same.

Some of my mother’s superstitions were outright nutty and I wondered if she wasn’t just making these things up to drive us crazy. No whistling at night because it would attract burglars. Only old people pose in the middle of photos because the center person would die first. We couldn’t say “poor cat” to a dead cat because its soul would haunt you. A gathering of crows meant death was near. If something falls in the house, there will be a death of someone you know. Is it just me or are a lot of superstitions centered around death?

A gathering of crows means death is near.

 

I remember I was with my mother once, just the two of us in the house, when there was a loud “bang” from a broom falling to the floor and my mom blurted out, “Someone died!” I think she even made some calls to make sure everybody we knew was still alive. I waited fearfully, wondering who it would be, but nobody died, or at least nobody we cared about because the expected news of death never arrived. In fact, in my experience, none of these superstitions ever panned out. And yet, to this day, I put my new shoes on outside the house and buy bananas in bunches of threes or fives but never in fours. I am completely brainwashed.

The one superstition I might actually admit to having come true was a Hawaiian one. In Hawaii, it is a commonly known taboo to pick up a piece of lava rock as a souvenir. Bad luck will beset those who do not heed the warnings. In fact, there is a whole website full of stories of returned rocks. My visiting grandmother was one of those unlucky tourists. She came with us on a vacation to the Big Island, and was forewarned, but did it anyway. Right after that, my sister and I, who were toddlers at the time, both got sick (probably a case of bad food rather than Pele’s curse) and my grandmother got locked out of her hotel room while my parents were gone.  Since she couldn’t speak a word of English, it was a harrowing experience for her. After that, she insisted we go back to the place where we picked up the rock so that she could dump it.

A returned Hawaiian lava rock

 

Another Hawaiian superstition is that if you take pork on the Pali Highway at night, your car will stop or break down. I don’t know of anyone who has been brave enough to try that one yet.

Carrying pork on Pali Highway at night will cause your car to stop or break down.

 

What were some of your superstitions growing up?  If you or someone you know has taken pork on Pali Highway, I’d love to hear what happened.