Signs, Superstitions, and Omens - Week 3

*This post was originally published here at Appalachian Mountain Roots on 10/13/2016*

Hey y'all! It has been a few weeks since my last installment of signs, superstitions, and omens (SSOs). I ended up having to spend a few more days in the big house (how I fondly refer to the hospital) and it took a little longer for me to "get back on my feet." Anyway, enough about my moans and groans...if you happened to miss the past installments, you can find them here: Week 1 & Week 2. 
I hope you enjoy these and please share any that you've heard in your neck of the woods!

*SIGNS*

A sign is believed to predict the future but unlike the omen, signs do not foretell negative happenings.

• According to Native American superstition, biting your tongue is a sign that you will soon receive either good news or a present.
• A dropped towel is a sign that you will have the arrival of an unwanted visitor. According to Scottish pioneers, you can nullify the sign by stepping backwards over the towel.
• If you dream that your teeth fall out, its a sign that your enemy will soon die. I always heard that it meant you would have sickness approaching.

*SUPERSTITIONS*

A superstition is an irrational belief, usually arising from ignorance or fear, that is believed by a number of people but is without foundation.

• Is there a thief in your community? Have a group of suspects dance around an upturned axe & when if falls over, the shaft will be pointing to the thief.
• If a baby sees it's image in a mirror before the age of six months, it will die before it turns one year old. 
• I remember when my Dude was around 5 months old, I left him sleeping on the couch while I went to make up my bed. I heard a thump and a cry not even 2 minutes after leaving the room. I raced back to the living room and scooped him up and cried right along with him. My Papaw Glenn happened to call about that time and calmed me down. He told me that he had always heard that if a baby didn't roll off of the bed before it was a year old, it would die. I'm not sure if that was really a superstition he had actually heard or if he was just trying to make me feel better...it helped a little.

*OMENS*

Omen- a phenomenon that is believed to tell the future, which also signifies change...usually negative.

• Bad luck will come to a household if someone dreams of an axe.
• Dreaming of a lizard is an omen that you have a secret enemy.
• If a bat comes close to flying into a person, it is an omen that the person will be betrayed by a friend. 
• A cat in a coal mine is an omen and the cat must be killed to avoid a death in the mines.

I hope that y'all have enjoyed this week's SSOs. Next week, I'll be sharing some more along with my review of a book by Appalachian author, Philip Kent Church. The name of the book is: Appalachian Lore: Haints, Hexes, Hoo-Doos and Such. 

I will also be having a giveaway over on my Facebook page of a signed copy of the book! Be sure to keep an eye out for it!!