Make Friday the 13th Your Lucky Day

In a year that has given us a pandemic, a bitterly-contested election, protests, wildfires, and murder hornets, it’s understandable that the common sentiment is “when will this year be over?”

Everyone: I can’t take any more.

2020: Here’s Friday the 13th.

Given the year we’re having, maybe you want to stay under the covers today. It’s totally understandable.

Dare I remind you that this is our second Friday the 13th in 2020?

Our first pwas in March.

Fun Fact: the month of November always mirrors the first 30 days of the month of March.

Ok. Back to Friday the 13th.

On the first Friday the 13th of this year, back in March, the U.S. declared a state of emergency regarding the pandemic.

So who knows what’s going to happen today.

But here’s a thought:

What if Friday the 13th isn’t unlucky? What if there’s nothing to fear?

Maybe there’s a different story we can tell to turn this day around.

Lucky 13

In Judaism, 13 is considered an auspicious number, as it is said that God has 13 attributes of mercy. The great Rabbinic sage Maimonedies articulated 13 principles of Jewish faith.

Some quick research revealed that other cultures also consider 13 to be a lucky number, including Shite Islam and Sikhism.

The Italian expression fare tredici (literally, “make thirteen”) means “to hit the jackpot.”

Tai Chi has 13 postures and 13 principles considered to be of fundamental importance to Tai Chi.

A “baker’s dozen” gives you 13 for the price of 12.

And since U.S. democracy is top of mind, let’s look at the significance of the number 13 here:

The United States was founded with 13 colonies, and our flag has 13 stripes.
The Great Seal of the United States features a bald eagle holding 13 olive branches in one wing and 13 arrows in the other. Its chest is a flag with 13 stripes and above its head are 13 stars.