In 5th grade my English teacher taught us all to spell the word triskaidekaphobia. (Try to say that 3x fast! ) And almost instantly, I remember being enthralled by the phonetics of this faaaancy-shmaaaancy word that I didn’t know the definition to. “What an EXOTIC word!” I thought to myself. And that same day I remember going to the library, dropping everything, running to the nearest computer, and looking up the definition. Well....I probably wasn’t running because after all I was at a library. It was more like speed walking.....but you get the point. Anyways, I propped myself on this seemingly gigantic chair that swallowed me whole, and stared at the screen as I read: You could imagine the shock on my face. I don’t mean to be dramatic, but at that point I FELT BETRAYED BY...THE ENTIRE ENGLISH LANGUAGE! Because for some odd reason, I had this crazy idea that the word meant something completely different than what it actually did. Needless to say I was very disappointed, which in itself is a little silly. But you can’t blame me, I was only 9! Nonetheless, I learned to spell this aesthetically sounding word. But I kid you not when I say that: “Not in a million years did I think my excellent spelling skills would ever come in handy!” And yet here we are! So, thank you Mrs. Heilman! Triskaidekaphobia: It’s Origins For as long as I can remember the number 13 has been unlucky. Like how almost all Americans have this collectivized hatred for Friday the 13th. And how you almost never encounter a 13th floor on an elevator. This directly stems from western superstition. Many often associate Friday the 13th, with the disturbing hockey mask-wearing Jason Vorhees running through Camp Crystal Lake bent on slashing unsuspecting teenagers with a gigantic machete. And while this may be true in horror movies......it is certainly NOT true in real life. In fact, Friday the 13th is deemed unlucky because of the historical patriarchal forces that were deathly afraid of the sacred feminine, or women in that day who might have had some sort of influence on their male-dominated ruling structures. ANDDDDDDDDDD............. What better day to discuss the sacred feminine and the history of Friday the 13th than today (FRIDAY THE 13TH!) in a way to dismantle patriarchal teachings? Let us all unlearn! THE HISTORY OR SHALL I SAY HERSTORY |
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October 2020
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