Folklore...Brooms, Sweeping and Spiders!

  Throughout the years, I have be admonished by countless older folks for my sweeping habits.  I admit that I do not keep the tidiest of houses but, in all fairness, the scoldings were never about cleanliness.  I was reprimanded because of a bunch of old wives' tales that, somehow, have stuck around through the ages.  Not that any of it mattered as I find the beliefs amusing, at best.  

  1.  "Do not sweep dirt out the front door after dark!  You will be sweeping away a friendship!"

  2.  "Never sweep after dusk or you will have a stranger knocking at your door within the hour!"

   3.  "Always sweep dirt OUT the back door but use a dustpan to sweep the dirt toward the inside at the front door.  If you do it the opposite direction, you will be "sweeping" away any money that you made during the day!"

  4.  "Never step over a fallen broom as it will bring bad luck!  To bring good luck, pick up the broom and stand it upside-down!"

  5.  "Stand a broom upside-down and you will be married before the year is out!"

  6.  "If you are sweeping and someone tracks in more dirt, never beat them with your broom or you will be in jail before the week is done!"

  Ok, so several of these are more broom-related than the actual sweeping but you get the idea that I have heard a lot about my housekeeping skills.  I won't even go into the comments about dog and cat hair on the furniture.  (Hey, I have critters.  Don't like it...go home.)  

  This evening, when I was sweeping out the entry way (yes, after dark and sweeping outward not inward), I noticed a slight movement near the doormat.  This was an indoor mat so I was curious as to what was creepy-crawling inside my house. Dropping to my knees, a spider stopped to say hello!  A cute, albeit large (for this type) jumping spider greeted me and convinced me to stop my cleaning.  My very own idea says to leave spiders in the house and never squish them!  There are only a few spiders that I will actually kill.  Brown recluses and those of the widows are on that list.  I deem all others as friends that keep the pests at bay.  With all of the folklore attached to brooms and sweeping, I had to giggle that a jumping spider may have just saved me from being cursed!

  As for the aforementioned admonishments...1.  I sweep any time dirt is on the floor.  2.  Strangers (and most others) are afraid to come to the Bayou after dark.  3.  Money is not of too much importance to me.  4.  Commonsense..Stepping over a fallen broom is asking for an accident...pick it up, for goodness sake!  5.  I am already married so right side up or upside down does not matter.  6.  Beating someone with a broom is never a good idea.  Just don't do it no matter how tempted you are!

  Now a bit of folklore about spiders!  If a spider is in your house, you should never, EVER kill it!  Spiders are associated with wealth and killing it will negate the promise of good fortune.  If it is an absolute must to kill the spider, then you must beg its forgiveness prior to smashing the critter.  So forget about smacking that spider with your broom!  In fact, NEVER sweep that spider out the front door after dark with a fallen broom that you have stepped over in the process of running away from said spider!  Leave it be as it may bring untold wealth!