The unluckiest of days
Gazebo Photo by Kaylee Jellum
Juniors Sarah Koplin, Cal Whitworth and Nathan Hunt won’t go near a ladder on Friday the 13th
Brooms are considered a Halloween kind of thing. After all, witches fly them, don’t they?
But for senior Jaylan Hughes, they have some significance on Friday the 13th.
“You can never sweep a broom into somebody’s feet because it’s bad luck,’’ Hughes said.
Like many other athletes, Nate Brooks has plenty of superstitions. One has nothing to do with anything the senior does on the basketball court.
“Putting my hat on my bed,’’ said Brooks. “My grandmother always told me not to cause she’s really superstitious.’’
Freshman basketball player Holly Hunt, however, was timid about playing a Friday game on the unluckiest of days.
“I am very nervous about my free throws in my basketball game because there is a force in the universe that makes things happen,’’ she said. “On Friday the 13th, the force is out of balance.”
“I’m super anxious,’’ said freshman Will Baxley. “I never walk through the middle door and I always have to knock on wood.’’
Ninth-grader, Liza Boswell, is also one to put her knuckles to use.
“I’d say what I always do is knock on wood so I don’t jinx something,’’ she said.
Junior Ellie Wangerin, another wood-knocker, called herself a “little bit superstitious.’’
“It’s just a fun day where they are like, ‘Oh I’m so scared’ ”said Wangerin. “But no I don’t think it has any significance.”
Drew Kelly, a ninth-grader, is among those who have no fear of Fridays with the No. 13 beside them.
“It is considered bad luck, but it doesn’t really affect me,’’ Kelly said.
For ninth-grader Riley Davis, the numbers don’t add up any more than any other day on the calendar.
“It’s baloney because it’s just as rare as Thursday the 12th or Wednesday the 11th,’’ she said. “And 13 is just a number anyway.”
Senior Megan Wimberly had a clever take on the traditionally unlucky day.
“It’s a conspiracy of the government to try to take our money,’’ she said, laughing.
(David Matlock, Zuna Shabbir, Rania Akbar, Lizzi Clayton, Anna Kate Alford, Hannah Lovett, Molly Garud, Carly Wanna, Kenzie Muenzer, Josie Lamb and Arya Datta all contributed to this story.)