Sunday, December 9, 2012

I wear this close to my heart. Read on to find out why.

Shortly after I added my previous essay, I noticed that I had reached a milestone for Momentary Joy:
My 100th posting! 
I rarely play the lottery, but I do enjoy playing with numbers, though not in the strictly mathematical sense.
I even have a lucky number.
It's 13.
I suppose you could say (if you know and love weird words) that instead of triskaidekaphobia, I have triskaidekaphilia.
The Urban Dictionary describes that tongue-twisting word as "obsession with the number 13."
I'm not obsessed, just amused by how often that number turns up in my life.
For example, I was born on Friday the 13th.
The numbers in the address of my childhood home add up to 13.
The numbers in the address of the house I live in now add up to 13.
At my first newspaper job, my phone extension was 13.
At my next newspaper job, I was assigned a computer file number of 13.
Some of the 13s I chose myself:
I have worn the number 13 on my softball jersey for years, except for a few seasons when I wore 49 ... which adds up to 13.
I confess that when possible, I pick gym lockers with numbers that add up to 13.
Hmmm. Maybe that Urban Dictionary definition isn't so far off.
My very logical husband gently teases me about my … affection for the number, even suggesting that if I tried hard enough, I could find patterns in my life connecting to other numbers. Maybe, but hey, those other numbers aren't my lucky number, they're someone else's.
A recent case in point:
Abington Free Library just completed its annual Mimi Zabel Jewelry Auction.
I had never placed a bid in the silent auction, which is held through the month of November. On the auction's penultimate day (I almost never get to use that word!), I decided to take a look at the offerings.
One pin caught my eye almost immediately: a black circle with mother of pearl inlays, depicting a night sky complete with crescent moon and a shooting star.
My husband and I saw a shooting star on our first date, and we both made the same wish that night, which happily came true. (Even very logical people sometimes play with magic.) 
In short, that pin spoke to my heart.
Then I noticed the number attached to it: 85 … which adds up to 13.
I flipped open the binder to find the bids for item 85. The most recent entry was a bid for $10.
It only took me a second to decide what to bid: $13.
Apparently it was meant to be.
A few days later the phone rang. One of the Friends of the Library was calling to tell me that I had won the bidding for the pin.
Lucky me!
And, lucky 13.
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(As I wrote this, I noticed that the number for the pin, 85, also happens to be the year we were married. I almost feel like cueing up the music for "The Twilight Zone.")