Warm sunshine, flowers opening, frosty dawns, a touch of snow. They’re all part of Spring.
Present day life for our Historical Society has been filled with ups and downs, trying new things, and applying for grants. I’ve found myself saying, “Cross your fingers!” And it appears to have caught on with other members working to get ready for one event or the other. I’ve been wondering, where did this saying come from? And how long have people been saying it? Off to the computer I go to see what the historians say about this uplifting phrase.
Wow, I can see I’m not the only one curious about this ‘cross your fingers’ thing. As I filter through the collection of information, looking for my answers, I find myself enjoying the clever ability humans have of sharing hope and positivity with others around them. We live with a constant barrage of sad, scary, or angry news, of our local communities and of others all around the world. I think I just had an epiphany! Humans really are clever and full of hope.
The definition of epiphany when capitalized, is the celebration of the baptism of Christ. And what a coincidence that the phrase, ‘cross your fingers’ has a strong connection to very early Christianity. Before Christianity it was used by Pagans as a symbol of good luck. When greeting, each would cross the index finger of the other to release the positive spirits from the intersection of the cross.
In the times of Christian persecution, it was a way to greet another of the Christian faith without exposure.
By the 1900 crossing of the fingers had become more of a ‘wish me luck’ phrase or by hiding your crossed fingers behind your back, a way to avoid negative fall out from telling a white lie.
You’ll find an abundance of information about this little gesture on the Internet. One posting, I believe gets right to the point of the matter, is an article written by : The Straight Dope https://www.straightdope.com/21342941/what-s-the-origin-of-keeping-your-fingers-crossed.
With your Gilmer County WV Historical Society volunteers venturing out in areas unfamiliar to most of us, we’d like to say, ‘ Fingers Crossed’.
If you are curious and would like to get involved in some of our new projects, maybe share your expertise in the areas of History, Genealogy, Internet marketing, Web Sites, Museum artifacts, grant writing and tea parties, please contact us. We love to learn and grow so we may keep our history strong.
Contributing through donations is another vital way in keeping us afloat as a Non-Profit Org. To make a monetary monthly, yearly or onetime donation, just klick on any of our Donation buttons and follow the prompts to PayPal or credit card. Thank you for helping us all keep history accurate.
Glorious Spring, everyone!