Friday the 13th conjures up many different notions for different folks. You have those who are not superstitious at all, those who are mildly superstitious, and those who are overly superstitious. You have those who use the day to watch their favorite scary movies. There are many who work in emergency rooms who declare they hate working on Friday the 13th because all the crazies are out and the ER gets flooded. And then there are those who see it as just another ordinary day.

Probably the most curious news story I have seen today, sort of related to it being Friday the 13th, is that a couple of witches in Massachusetts were going to have a seance in order to get some extra good mojo going for Tom Brady and the Patriots for this weekend’s game against Tim Tebow and the Broncos. I was a little afraid when I read the headline, but according to the story, they aren’t going to hex Tebow or do anything to cause him harm; instead, they were trying to just be positive for the Patriots. I was left shaking my head. Girls, it’s just a ball game. Being a football fan myself, I understand wanting your team to win, but really if they have any power toward creating some good mojo, shouldn’t they use it for something more productive, such as establishing world peace or something?

Athletes are often very superstitious. I can’t imagine that either Brady and the Patriots or Tebow and the Broncos would be especially thrilled to find out that some witches are trying to get the mojo going, either for or against them. I’ve been around quite a few athletes, and from what I’ve gathered, they don’t like anybody interfering with their mojo. They have their own rituals they follow every game day, and the ones I know would prefer to just be left alone to do their own thing.

Now we all know, and that includes the athletes, that their little superstitions have nothing to do with how the game comes out. Or does it? The thing is they get so caught up in their routine that if that routine gets disrupted, they lose focus. If that happens to enough players on the team, it could cause some problems. It doesn’t really matter that the “lucky shirt” isn’t really lucky. For whatever reason, having that lucky shirt on game day keeps the athlete calm. By staying calm, s/he stays focused. By staying focused, s/he will play well. And while it stands to reason, and logically it should not matter at all whether the athlete has the lucky shirt or doesn’t, it becomes a mind game, and it does matter. Sometimes the athlete can overcome it and perform well; other times, s/he can’t.

And that’s the thing about superstitions. They are not logical, and there’s no rhyme or reason for why people, even incredibly intelligent people, buy into them. All that really matters is that they do. And when they do, it becomes a mind game. And, my friends, the mind is a very powerful force.

So when your friends who are athletes don’t wash their practice clothes for an entire season, or when they have to have the solid gray shorts, or they have to listen to Hank Williams, Jr., before the game, rather than remind them how ridiculous they are being, just smile. They’ll be OK, but there’s no point arguing with them or trying to get them to change their minds. They know it’s irrational and illogical, just as you do. It’s all a mind game. And the great paradox of the mind is its ability to be both totally rational and irrational, logical and illogical, all at the same time.