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Tuesday, September 4, 2001
Lucky me
Fuzzy frogs to gargoyles, charms take the shape of their owners’ desires, loves
By Cassandra Hinojosa
Caller-Times

David Adame/Caller-Times

Madonna may wear her Britney Spears T-shirt for luck, but a slew of trinkets and stuffed animals keeps 94-year-old Alta Bauman lucky during Wednesday night bingo. ‘Last time I won, I won $750. ... I sure do bring all of my lucky charms,’ she says.

Bingo money isn't all Alta Bauman, 94, brings with her on Wednesday nights to Weber Bingo. After finding a spot with her son and daughter-in-law, she lays out an array of stuffed animals including a small squirrel and a ladybug, a rabbit's foot, a small brass horseshoe and a miniature green fuzzy frog around her bingo cards.
   "Last time I won, I won $750," Bauman said. "I sure do bring all of my lucky charms."
   While the announcer calls out numbers, Bauman will grab her stuffed animals for extra luck.
   Other people may not be so obvious about which objects bring them good fortune. The always-outgoing Madonna, for instance, opts to wear a Britney Spears T-shirt to bed. She says the young pop star is her lucky charm, according to a recent issue of Elle magazine.
   But not everyone expects to become a multiplatinum pop star by carrying or wearing his or her favorite trinket. People carry objects from coins to statues for all kinds of reasons - some just out of habit and others to calm their minds during stressful times.
   Too close for comfort

‘I’ve never left my bee behind. ... I took it and ended up making all state.’
— John Alvarez, 17, King High School senior

   Chester helps sooth the nerves of Amy Burkham, a self-employed graphic artist.
   She keeps the miniature, red-eyed gargoyle in her pocket so he's close by during stressful situations or when she gets "weird vibes."
   "I saw him in a shop one day, and I knew his name had to be Chester," Burkham, 24, said. "I thought he was very cute for a gargoyle. He was so small and portable.
   "I have no absolute proof that he brings good luck, but I carry him around anyway," she said. "I carry him on impulse when I feel something unusual might happen to me that day. You never know when a gargoyle might come in handy."
   All of us subconsciously search for items to bring us good luck, good feelings or a sense of security - an attempt to re-create the feeling of being an infant with a mother who tends to us 24-7, according to Stephen Farrell, a Corpus Christi psychotherapist.

David Pellerin/Caller-Times

Rachel Cotham wears handmade bracelets to remind her of friends and deal with stress. ‘(They) help me face the day,’ she says.

   "We are trying to get to that security of being whole and complete," said Farrell. "We are constantly seeking out and searching for that comfort." We attach different meanings to different objects, he said. For instance, if someone decides to bring a stuffed animal to a bingo game and they win that night, they'll attach the idea of winning to that specific object. The good luck charm then becomes part of the experience we want to re-create.
   "It's not the object, but the experience it provides," Farrell said.
   No more crystals
   Sometimes people will switch good luck charms to bring them a different type of positive energy.

‘I wear (a Kwan Yin statuette) as a reminder to be compassionate and merciful.’
— Rachél Cotham, massage therapist

   Massage therapist Rachél Cotham recently traded in the crystal she had carried in a beaded pouch around her neck for a tiny sterling silver Kwan Yin statuette - a Buddhist deity of compassion and mercy.
   By carrying the statue in the pouch, "it rests right where my heart is," Cotham said. "I wear it as a reminder to be compassionate and merciful to people I meet throughout the day."
   She's not sure if the statue brings her luck, but it does keep her focused on good feelings, Cotham said.
   "I believe in intention," she said. "If I set an intention, it will help me create that hope or desire."
   Cotham likes to design jewelry and spent her 30th birthday with friends creating "treasure bracelets" made of beads that remind the friends of each other.
   "If I feel down and lonely, I put (mine) on. It helps me face the day," Cotham said. "I see my friends wearing theirs, too."
   Besides generating positive feelings about others, some lucky charms come in handy for student athletes.
   Superstitious student
   King High School senior and third baseman John Alvarez has carried a rainbow-colored stuffed bee in his gym bag for the past year and a half. The bee was a gift from his girlfriend, who had the stuffed animal since she was 5.
   "I've never left my bee behind," John, 17, said. "I took it and ended up making all state. I had a great year."
   But not all the good-luck pressure is on the bee. John also carried his uncle's purple baseball jersey in his gym bag as well. The uncle, Arnie Alvarez, taught him to play baseball and was a coach at Weslaco High School.
   "I feel like if I leave one of those items behind, I can't perform well," John said. "(My uncle is) making me do what's best. He's helping me go to college. He passed away and it was given to me as an item he wanted me to have."
   Of course, it's not easy carrying around a stuffed animal and jersey while trying to impress teammates.
   "My freshman and sophomore years, teammates would ask me, 'Who's jersey is that and why are you carrying it? The older guys gave me a bunch of ridicule," John remembers. "(But) I've always been superstitious. I have routines. I feel comfortable that way."
   Nickel and sock luck
   Even a little spare change can put sophomore Jordan Chambless at ease. Since the fifth grade, he has stowed a nickel in his sock during football games, because his jersey is No. 5. Jordan is now a quarterback at Calallen High School. He keeps the nickel in his back pocket when he plays baseball.
   If he forgets to bring a nickel to a game, Jordan will scramble in the locker room and ask if anyone has a spare.
   "One time I couldn't find a nickel anywhere ... I just had five pennies," he remembers. "Actually, I did play good that game. I'm not so sure that it works, but I feel like I have to have it."
   Even the good luck ritual needs a little extra help.
   "I put my left sock on before my right sock," Jordan said, "and then my left shoe before my right shoe.
   "If I do it the other way, I think it would bring bad luck."


Contact Cassandra Hinojosa at 886-3617 or hinojosac@caller.com

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