Fleur de Lis

“I got this necklace as a freshman in high school from my grandmother who is from Great Britain.  Fleur de lis means flower of the lily, and the symbol represents light and life.  Ever since she gave me the necklace I have worn it everyday as a good luck charm.  It also reminds me of my grandmother and my family.  In a sense it also is a representation of my family to me.  I have seen other people wear the necklace as well as the symbol used in different ways.  For instance, the New Orleans Saints football team has the fleur de lis as their team logo.  When I have children I want to buy them similar necklaces too or even pass mine down to them.”

This is the second good luck charm that I have collected in this project and both originated from Europe.  Also in both cases, the people who owned the good luck charm received it from a grandparent who was born in a European country.  Although these are only two cases, there is clearly some commonality between the two.  In both cases, the charms served to represent their original meaning as well as reminding the two subjects of their families.  Matt mentioned how the flour de lis is the team symbol for the New Orleans Saints, and I have observed that it is the symbol for the Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority here at USC.  ?