Sole Ties
October 14, 2024
Writer: Emily Carlisle
Editor: Carly Schneider
Black cats bring bad luck. Never walk underneath a ladder. Knock on wood. Chances are, you have probably heard of these common beliefs. No matter their origin, superstitions have become an integral part of worldwide culture, rooted in historical, regional, and religious circumstances. Uncertainty is a fundamental aspect of the human experience, and superstitions such as these offer explanations and solutions in response to this inherent unpredictability.
For her entire life, my mom has always been a superstitious woman. In addition to mainstream superstitious beliefs, she also has certain habits that are foreign or difficult to understand — the most notable one being the habit of keeping a penny in the bottom of her left shoe to bring luck. When I was younger, I never understood this custom. Wouldn’t it be uncomfortable? Why specifically a penny? What if it falls out of your shoe? Perplexed, I dismissed it as another seemingly arbitrary characteristic of my mother’s, similar to the way she can whistle through a blade of grass or likes to sleep with the windows open during a thunderstorm.
It wasn’t until a few years later that I was able to appreciate the depth of this tradition. During my junior year of high school, I was preparing to compete in a public speaking competition when a wave of desperation washed over me. Feeling overwhelmed by the pressure of the contest and needing another source of luck, I intuitively slipped a shiny penny into the bed of my left high heel just as I had seen my mom do so many times before. Immediately the cool weight of the coin against my sole seemed to anchor me back to the present, and served as a source of reassurance during the stressful day.
Superstitions can provide a sense of comfort and control in uncertain times, but it wasn’t until I followed in my mother’s copper footsteps that I realized the importance of these superstitions. Just as these traditions are a source of solace and familiarity for my mother, she serves as a buoy of hope for me to cling to in the tumultuous waters of life. Although sometimes our interactions generate frustration akin to metal digging into the bottom of my foot, they nevertheless help me to understand her values and beliefs as a self-made woman and fellow eldest daughter.
To this day, the penny remains in that same pair of heels, a constant reminder of the innate connection to my mother: my superstition, my comfort, and the heads to my tails. As I continue to get older and reflect on our relationship, I recognize more and more of her in myself and the impacts that her life has made on mine. My mother and I are two sides of the same coin: I am all she has ever been and she may be everything I’ll ever be.
Image: Chloe Sinel
