The headline of this column is not a bunch of random letters typed on the keyboard by a two-year-old. Rather it is a very real condition. Triskaidekaphobia is the fear of the number 13. It goes with Araskavedekatriaphobia, which is the fear of Friday the 13th. Neither of these terms are easily pronounceable.
Unlike some people, I am not afraid of the number 13, nor am I superstitious of the day, Friday the 13th. In fact, 13 is my lucky number; I wear it on my soccer jersey. It’s also usually my lucky day when a Friday the 13th occurs. Lucky for others (maybe), I was born on a Friday the 13th – cue the spooky music here.
Superstition is a great song by Stevie Wonder, but something that should be taken with a grain of salt otherwise. Not being superstitious – it’s difficult to take superstition in others seriously.
Superstition is defined as being a belief or reverence in the supernatural. Ghosts, goblins, witches, and so on. It can be boiled down to the basic feeling of fear. There are many things people do because they are superstitious, like throwing salt over their shoulder after they spill some. “It’s to ward off bad luck.” Or it’s to waste more salt by throwing it around to make a mess for others to clean up.
It’s apparently bad luck to walk under a ladder. This superstition was probably developed by a person who walked under a ladder and had a poor experience with gravity – meaning the person on the ladder dropped something. My fear of gravity and regard for personal safety is why I don’t walk under ladders.
The superstition of not opening an umbrella indoors was likely developed by the husband who did so and knocked all his wife’s collectables off the shelves – breaking them. Avoiding black cats likely became a superstition of people who don’t like cats at all and decided to produce some bad public relations against them. I know a co-worker who probably wishes orange, rather than black, was the colour chosen.
When I was a kid, we used to lift our feet off the floor in the car or the school bus whenever we went over railway tracks. It’s origin probably came from another superstition of not stepping on cracks.
Another car-related superstition is to put a scratch on your new car. If you scratch it first, you will avoid others from damaging your car. I put as much faith in that as I do about holding your breath when you go through a tunnel or drive past a cemetery. The Lærdal Tunnel in Norway is the world’s longest highway tunnel at 24.5 kilometres – better drive fast.
Back to Friday the 13th, those days are big in Ontario for some motorcyclists. Every Friday the 13th, rain, snow, or summer sun, tens of thousands of motorcyclist invade Port Dover on Lake Erie, and more recently Gananoque on the St. Lawrence River. Gananoque’s meet is much smaller. Port Dover has seen over 140,000 riders in a single day. Imagine the tourism business opportunities available from having your town overrun by large groups on a specific day which is held in such nefarious regard like Friday the 13th. I don’t think a lot of local residents feel lucky that day.
Superstitions come from fear; a fear of the unknown or what science cannot easily explain. They also come from a place of ignorance and arrogance. Organized religions used superstition to keep the flock focused on their message; and politicians use it to play to their voting base. Where science, knowledge, and facts can provide clarity, we still see superstition, lies, and un-facts taking hold. I put a lot of this down to a lack of critical thinking by some in the population.
While I do not have superstitions, I do have a fear – not of numerophobia as a whole, but just of one number – 50. Lucky or unlucky for me, I have 365 days, er 364 days as of August 13, to get over it. Wish me luck!
This column was originally published in the Wednesday, August 13, 2025 print edition of the Morrisburg Leader.
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