One day, on the way home from visiting down town, a friend of mine found himself in the middle of a serial collision during rush hour. In his back seat was his four-year old son. The police arrived and checked on all drivers and passengers. The police were so happy to see his son in a good booster seat with the seat belt properly attached. My friend was prepared for luck.
Way too often, the policemen see the horrifying results of children not using booster seats and/or seat belts when the unexpected accident hits.
My friend and his son were taken in for checkups at the emergency room. Luckily they were both fine, although of course still a bit chocked. He is the kind of person that always wears his seat belt and insists on everyone in the car doing so all the time. So how lucky was he? Of course, he was very lucky!
The cars could have been going much faster when they slammed into each other, he could have got a nasty whiplash injury to his spine, his son could have… On the other hand, he had prepared himself the best he could to get through an accident with as little injury as possible. He had bought his son the best booster seat he could find and they were both belted in properly. He was prepared to be lucky – or as Louis Pasteur expressed it: “Luck favors the prepared mind”.
Prepare for Luck on St. Patricks Day
People used to prepare to be lucky by carrying rabbit’s feet and four-leaf clover. If you are lucky enough to get a couple of beers during tonight’s St. Patrick’s day bar-hopping, how prepared are you to get home safely? Did you know that adult men, who are out walking late at night or early morning after a couple of drinks are at high risk of getting into traffic accidents? Penn (of Penn & Teller) is quoted as saying “Luck is probability taken personally,” so why not increase the probability and your chances of being lucky by upgrading to a reflective shamrock?
(Psst. If you don’t believe in four-leaf clovers, a baseball or basketball funflector® tag will work equally well.)
Have fun and enjoy St. Patrick’s day!
Elisabeth
