Superstitions

I’ve been saving this one for so long my bananas are mushy. Nevertheless, even an overripe banana can be made into banana bread.

If you’re superstitious then you may throw daggers at me (or bananas) but I’m not one bit superstitious. There is the odd superstition that’s pretty super. It’s quite sensible to avoid running with scissors or walking under ladders. Stepping on cracks and lines, however, are things that I do with reckless abandon.

My dad’s spine? Hmmm… well, he does have some back problems, but my mom’s back is fine. She has hip problems, but that’s not my fault! I’ve never stepped on any chips that I can recall. Or maybe the superstition for hips would be this: Avoid every dip or you’ll gimp your mother’s hip. More likely you’ll gimp your own hip. 

I was recently educated about a rather bizarre superstition. Andrew and I we’re watching Swamp People when someone was aghast there was a banana on the boat. Apparently, you never bring a banana on a boat. (Yep! This is a good one.) 

I spent the rest of the show expressing my disapproval of the discrimination that this banana was being subjected to. Of course, everything started to go wrong and the banana was to blame. Finally, they shot their lunch and suddenly the day turned around.

I don’t buy it. I buy bananas regularly, but I’m not buying that a banana on a boat is a bad omen, unless the people onboard are bananas. Then things could turn ugly pretty quick. 

You know how superstitions get started, right? Someone had a bad day so they looked for something (or someone) to blame. Women were once bad luck on a boat as well. This one I can understand. The first women on a vessel probably stirred things up pretty good. They don’t say too much about Noah’s wife, but that story was probably so un-newsworthy they decided to toss that one overboard. He probably wanted to toss her overboard, as well, but it appears that everyone including all of the animals survived the trip. I guess there were no bananas on board.

Bananas on board… Now, that would make a good bumper sticker.

This blinkin’ banana thing stuck with me. While in the middle of a conversation with Andrew I blurted out, Oh! I have it! I know how this banana superstition got started!

Unfortunately, this is proof that I wasn’t listening to what he was saying. He wasn’t bothered one bit that I’d interrupted him. He just looked at me curiously and said, “Go on, I’m interested. I wanna hear this.” 

So here’s my theory: It was the classic, careless banana peel tossed aside routine. This wasn’t the bananas fault! Human foibles were to blame for the mishap that sent some poor sap sailing. Andrew added that this fellow fell overboard and was gobbled up by a gator.

My husband pondered this a little further, concluding that there’s another possible reason for the banana ban: A vessel was held up by fresh fruit.

I’m guessing it was a ruthless band of fruit ninjas that wielded this fruit so sinisterly, and because no one had ever seen the Monty Python’s “Self Defense Against Fresh Fruit” skit they we’re totally caught off guard and unprepared. However, there’s a bit of a flaw with this theory, the ban is on bananas, not all fresh fruit. 

It isn’t right that the banana receives the blame! For all anyone knows, this potassium rich tropical delight could be the hero of the story, not only for its health benefits, but also in the event that your vessel should spring a leak. What if the banana happens to be the right thing to repair that breach?  

Hasn’t anyone ever heard the children’s songThere’s A Hole In My Bucket? I doubt that dear Henry used fresh fruit to repair that bucket, but dear Liza was nagging him pretty good to try everything, so you never know. It wasn’t long after this that dear Henry kicked the bucket. (*Ba-dum-ch*) 

I think dear Henry would approve of the first Bible verse below, but then again, dear Henry was kind of argumentative and full of excuses. So the second verse is for him. It appears that we all have our flaws. Just don’t bring a banana on a boat. It only opens up a can of worms.

Wait a minute… that would be a good thing on a fishing boat, wouldn’t it?

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“A continual dripping on a rainy day, and a quarrelsome wife are alike; to restrain her is to restrain the wind or to grasp oil in one’s right hand.”

Proverbs 27:15

“But Moses said to the Lord, “Oh, my Lord, I am not eloquent, either in the past or since you have spoken to your servant, but I am slow of speech and of tongue.” Then the Lord said to him, “Who has made man’s mouth? Who makes him mute, or deaf, or seeing, or blind? Is it not I, the Lord?  Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you shall speak.” But he said, “Oh, my Lord, please send someone else.” Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses and he said, “Is there not Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Behold, he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you, he will be glad in his heart.”

Exodus 4:10-14

(Photo credit goes to Pixabay.com user tookapic.)