Pampaswerte, pansabit sa pinto. Brings luck, for hanging on the door.
At the beginning of each year, our streets are teeming with lucky charms for sale. We Filipinos usually hedge our luck by choosing from our smorgasborg of several cultures' centuries' worth of symbolism and evolution. Some cars bear Chinese coins, pictures of saints, and an occasional folk amulet, hanging from the same rearview mirror. My more cosmopolitan friend yesterday showed me her pendants, which she wears at the same time: the evil eye, a Benedictine medallion, and a Mayan goddess.
Closer shot.
My lucky charm of choice (bought in Quiapo) is a bunch of palay or unhusked rice grains that you hang on your door. I hung mine overhead, on the door frame. I'm not one for superstitions, but I believe they make life more interesting (especially if they involve aesthetically pleasing elements).
This one reminds me that 2009 will be a year of "going back to basics". When hopefully, our knowledge of nature and eating will once again become more nuanced and joyful than the Age of Food Commodifucation had it.
