WHAT COULD BE MEANT BY THE OLD ADAGE GETTING UP ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE BED

We have all heard this from our moms. I am sure if we indeed get up in the morning and act “crabby”she will tell us so. It has no basis in fact, certainly, but it’s one of hundreds of beliefs we hold in English and other cultures. This particular epithet comes from the belief that you enter your bed at night on the left side and leave it in the morning on the right side. It was believed that the left side was the one where the devil was waiting. If you got out of bed on that same, or wrong side, you would be taken over by the devil. The right side was the opposite side and you would move away from the devil.

We all, grow up learning these, and although we don’t believe them they seem to stick inside our minds. Things like crossing our fingers for good luck or when we are about to tell an untruth help to keep us away from harm or the devil. Opening an umbrella in the house is something you don’t do because it may bring bad luck as you are bringing something that is usually outdoors, inside. There’s so many of these, and we often forget most of them as we grow older.

But Harry Oliver, the great English writer, doesn’t want this to happen. He has written and researched the complete book that he calls “Black Cats and April Fools” to delight us.
One curious belief he relates is that if a bird flies into your house or even hits your window there will be a tragedy befalling someone in the house, and maybe even death could happen. The belief here  may be many centuries old. It comes from the thought that birds are the embodiments of the souls of dead people.

Finally, a rabbit’s foot will always bring you good luck if carried in your pocket. It came about several thousand years ago when the rabbit was considered one animal that would cure you of such painful ailments as rheumatism. Later the ideas gravitated to rabbits being fast-breeders and they were a sign of prosperity and fortune. We have lived with so many of these tales all of our lives and we subconsciously acknowledge them. Just remember, don’t resist the urge, and when you are walking on the sidewalk avoid that crack or you will break your mother’s back.