Bored Panda reached out to one of the top authors of Fallon’s #MyWeirdSuperstition challenge who said her superstition was eating M&Ms in pairs and by color. “First orange, then red, brown, yellow, green, and end with blue. If there isn't an even number, I make a group of 7. I don't know why, but I've always done this,” K. Hellams from Gastonia, NC tweeted.
Hellams told us that she does indeed call herself a superstitious person, “but only with certain superstitions,” and added: “For example, if I am talking about something that hasn't happened to me, I knock on wood afterward.”
When asked about her viral M&M superstition, the author told us about its story of origin. “My superstition with the M&Ms started at a football game when I was maybe 5 or 6. I don't recall why it started, but my team won! Now, I firmly believe that it brings me good luck and keeps me balanced in a way.”
At this point, Hellams admits her superstition is somewhat hard to describe but “it has become almost a ritual.” When asked about her tweet being selected for The Tonight Show, she confessed that “I was hoping my tweet would make it onto Jimmy's show, but being in the favorites is amazing!”
A whopping 25% of the people in the US actively avoid anything from the number 13 to black cats, breaking mirrors, or walking under ladders as they consider themselves superstitious. One survey has even indicated that 13% of people would be bothered by staying on the 13th floor of a hotel and 9% said they would ask for a different room. This may explain why so few buildings have a 13th floor.
Incredibly, some renowned airlines like Air France and Lufthansa do not even have a 13th row. On top of that, Lufthansa also doesn’t have a 17th row, since in some countries, like Brazil and Italy, the unlucky number is 17, and not 13.
So what are the reasons behind so many superstitions out there, even the ones that don’t make that much sense? Well, Don Saucier, associate professor of psychology, suggests that superstitions are the behaviors with which people attempt to affect or control their future.
"People believe in superstitions to try to restore some prediction and control to their world," Saucier said. "Not knowing what will happen to them is discomforting, and performing superstitious behavior can make people feel a little better about the future."
But this is not something new. In fact, superstitions may go back as long as mankind has existed, as scientists believe that some religious and spiritual beliefs, as well as amulets, totems, and charms that were used to ward off evil, were all part of the superstitious behaviors our ancestors followed.
However, on the contrary to today’s concept of superstition, the sacrifices observed in past civilizations may have been performed to intentionally receive good luck.
