Title: It’s Bad Luck to Say “Good Luck!”

Informant info: Informant name is Jason Laackmann. Jason is twenty-eight years old and attends Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH as a United States Army Veteran. Jason served in the Army for five years in active duty and continues to serve in the Minnesota National Guard. The locations in which he has served are Fort Bend, Georgia, Fort Riley, Kansas, and overseas in Eastern Afghanistan.

Type of lore: Customary Folklore, Superstition

Language: English

Country of Origin: USA

Social / Cultural Context: Jason was interviewed at Dartmouth College. He was asked to talk about any superstitions he may recall during his time as a paratrooper in the army. Informant was very serious when stating that one should never say good luck, but then gave a smile when he stated how he would react and cracked a joke.

Associated File: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6KcnEdk7Q4 (Start at 2:55)

Transcript:  [I have recorded the item exactly how it was told to me in the interview]: Um, as a paratrooper, you, you never tell somebody, you know, “good luck” before they jump out of the airplane. It’s a bad omen and if somebody ever said it to me, I’d be, I’d be freaking out as soon as my parachute opened. I’d be afraid I was going to break my leg or my shoulder when I landed.

Informant’s comments: Jason takes this superstition seriously and is very nervous before jumping out of the air plane in the off chance someone might say “good luck!” on his way out.

Collector’s comments: Jason was serious at first when discussing this superstition, but was able to make a light-hearted joke at the end.