Monthly Archives: May 2018

Money Traditions

Nationality: Filipino
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/3/18
Primary Language: English
Language: Chinese, Tagalog

Main Piece: SM: Don’t put money on the table! It’s just bad luck. Grandparents will scream at you. You can put it on top of a napkin or a book and it can still be on the table, but don’t let it touch the bare table.

 

Context: This is a Filipino tradition, seemingly with an older generation, as SM’s parents did not seem worried about it.

 

Background: This tradition only existed shortly, because SM told me that after a few times she learned to never do it, because her grandparents would freak out every time.

 

Analysis: What is particularly interesting about this is that her grandparents freaked out about it; not her, not her parents. Neither her nor her parents thought that putting money on a bare table was a problem, but her grandparents told her it was bad luck and she should never do it! This is an interesting example of a superstition dying out little by little, as SM’s parents did not carry this tradition from their own parents and did not pass it down onto her, but her grandparents still firmly believe in it.

 

The Clock is Ticking

Nationality: Filipino
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/3/18
Primary Language: English
Language: Chinese, Tagalog

Main Piece: SM: For Chinese people, don’t bring clocks to the wedding, because that’s like a symbolism… thats a symbol of basically counting down someone’s death. So if you give it as a gift, it’s like you’re wishing for someone to die soon.

 

Context: This is a superstition that is just understood in the Chinese culture, similar to how it’s understood in the US that “you shouldn’t wear white to a wedding.”

 

Background: SM grew up in Singapore, and so she grew up fully aware of this superstition.

 

Analysis: The symbolism in this one is particularly interesting, because it does actually make sense! Clocks are often used as symbols of death, or of limited time, and so when you think about it it completely makes sense that gifting a clock could symbolize gifting someone death. At a wedding, when everyone is excited about the future, and many families are gifting practical household options, I can understand how the last thing you would want is a clock.

 

The Color Purple

Nationality: Filipino
Age: 21
Occupation: Student
Residence: Los Angeles
Performance Date: 4/3/18
Primary Language: English
Language: Chinese, Tagalog

Main Piece: SM: If your favorite color is purple, then…. We all believe that you will never get married. I have no idea why. It’s also just bad luck to have your favorite color be purple.

 

Context: This superstition is told often enough that SM remembers this off the top of her head, and is generally mentioned around single daughters.

 

Background: SM grew up in a Filipino household, and even said that one of her cousin’s favorite colors was purple and she didn’t get married until she was 40ish, and so SM has always believed in this superstition.

 

Analysis: I think this is extremely interesting; logically, there is absolutely zero correlation between someone’s favorite color and their chances of getting married, and yet is is so firmly believed in SM’s family (and according to her in the whole Filipino culture) that these two things are directly related. I could not find much information on it online, so I would be interesting in asking more Filipino families if they believe in this superstition.

 

Plane Safety 101

Nationality: American and British
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Santa Monica
Performance Date: 4/2/18
Primary Language: English

Main Piece: KC: My brother touches the side a plane before we get on it every time we fly, and makes all of us touch it too. I thought he was just weird but I guess it’s a superstition we all have now.

 

Context: This practice takes place every time KC’s family boards a plane.

 

Background: As KC’s family is particularly logical, and generally doesn’t take place in ghost stories or superstitions, this one superstition that her brother learned is of particular interest to her and her family.

 

Analysis: This is interesting, as it shows that folk beliefs can be learned from outside your family as well; KC’s brother would never have learned this superstition from his family, as they don’t practice any superstitions. Through school and his friends, he learned that to be safe while travelling on a plane, you were supposed to touch the side of the plane as you were boarding. As he began to believe this, he asked his family to do this while they would travel, and now the whole family partakes on it anytime they fly. Usually, folk beliefs are seen to be passed down from generation to generation, but this is an interesting example of a younger person teaching an older generation a new superstition.

 

Santa’s Sack

Nationality: American and British
Age: 20
Occupation: Student
Residence: Santa Monica
Performance Date: 4/2/18
Primary Language: English

Main Piece: KC: At Christmas, instead of having stockings we have pillowcases and they like act like Santa’s sack. I also used to leave cookies and brandy out for Santa, because apparently Santa really liked alcohol, haha!

 

Context: KC practices this tradition every Christmas, which she spends with her family in England.

 

Background: KC is very tied to her British roots, as her parents moved from England while her mother was pregnant with her, and so she has grown up with this and countless other British traditions being passed onto her through her direct and extended family.

 

Analysis: Pillowcases as stockings was not particularly interesting, but the thought that Santa left his sack for kids instead of filling a pre-left sock was super interesting! KC told me that at a very young age, she helped her grandmother fill the sacks, and until she explained this I was extremely confused– I wasn’t sure what sacks she was talking about. I like the idea that in England, Santa has thousands upon thousands of little sacks to leave for kids, as opposed to here in America where Santa has one big, giant, magical sack.