STRANGE NEWS: Say ‘Rabbit, Rabbit’ For 31 Days of Good luck
Say 'Rabbit, Rabbit' for 31 days of Good luck!
The Luck of the English
I grew up thinking that our family was the only family with
this strange tradition. On the morning of the first day of every month, there
was a slow chorus in our house, from room to room, the word “Rabbit” was spoken
one and then another until we had all been granted our month’s worth of good
luck. In my mind, my grandmother was the originator of the tradition, and it
extended to all my aunts and uncles and cousins on my father’s side of the
family.
The tradition was extended on the first day of
the new year, which called for walking backwards down the stairs and saying
Rabbit at the same time. I remember an especially hilarious evening spent with
my cousins on Cape Cod, not so long ago. I was visiting them at their beach
house which had a treacherous set of wooden stairs that lead to the ocean. It
was New Year’s Eve and particularly blustery outside but their house being a
kind of one-story bungalow, did not have any stairs. And so we all trooped
outside into the cold and inky darkness and walked backward down the steps
toward the ocean, shouting Rabbit into the stiff ocean breeze. Fortunately,
there wasn’t anyone to witness this spectacle and we all made it to the sand
safely, laughing hysterically at our irrational claim to this family tradition.
Say ‘Rabbit, Rabbit’ For 31 Days of Good luck
Rabbit, rabbit. Some of you may have said that first thing
this morning. And for those still slowly rising - get to it, it could bring you
good luck all month long. Saying rabbit, rabbit on the first of the month is
supposed to be a harbinger of good fortune. Host Rachel Martin speaks with
public radio host and word-lover Martha Barnette about where the notion came
from.
Weaken and banish witches
We all know the well-known sayings 'pinch punch first day of
the month' and 'white rabbits, white rabbits'. It originates from Medieval
times when people believed in witches. Salt was believed to make witches weak,
so the pinch part of the saying is the pinching of the salt and the punch part
was to banish the witch once she was weakened by the salt.
My daughters believe that the outcome will be a present
In
response to this strange norm another contributor said that his daughter
believed that the outcome would be a present, and that the word must be spoken
up the chimney to be most effective; another pointed out that the word rabbit
was often used in expletives, and suggested that the superstition may be a
survival of the ancient belief in swearing as a means of avoiding evil. People continue to express curiosity about the origins
of this superstition and draw upon it for
inspiration in making calendars suggestive of the Labors of the Months, thus
linking the rabbit rabbit superstition to seasonal fertility.
What saying rabbits rabbits will do to you
Obviously this is my very favourite superstition. Any excuse
to think about rabbits.But where does it come from and what is it all about? A quick bit of research
found the following:
- Saying 'white rabbits' on the first of the month will bring good luck throughout that month
- Some say you will get a present before the month is out
- It only works during a month with an 'R' its name
- It must be said first thing in the morning, before any other words are spoken
- There is some debate about whether is should be said once, twice or three times
- Some say it should be said at the top of the stairs
What's the deal with rabbit rabbit?
Live journal
You'll have good luck all month if the first words you utter on the first of the month are "rabbit rabbit." Bonus luck if it's your birth month.
If it's the first of the month and you're reading this, don't fret. Simply reverse the process as you drift off into slumber land repeating "tibbar tibbar." That's rabbit rabbit backwards."
You'll have good luck all month if the first words you utter on the first of the month are "rabbit rabbit." Bonus luck if it's your birth month.
If it's the first of the month and you're reading this, don't fret. Simply reverse the process as you drift off into slumber land repeating "tibbar tibbar." That's rabbit rabbit backwards."
As I understand it, this expression is used to safeguard
the speaker against the consequences of that other traditional slogan
"pinch, punch, first of the month".
