Originally Posted by Melusine

I forgot to mention this last week, but thought I'd put it down for the record.

The day after the total eclipse I asked my co-worker if she saw it on TV. She said while growing up her mother and others always believed that pregnant women should not go outside during an eclipse, and should fasten a safety pin under their shirt above their belly, so that their child would not be born with a cleft lip.

I said to her, "You know that's not true, right?" She replied, "Yeah, I know, but we still do it anyway."

I asked her if this old wive's tale applied only to total eclipses or partial eclipses as well. She wasn't sure, just that pregnant women should stay indoors. The reasoning was, "Well, I don't really believe it, but just in case, we still do it." I won't bother mentioning a similar corrollary to this. I like my co-worker very much, but she is embedded with all these old customs and alot of "just in case" thinking.

I had never heard this. She grew up in Texas, and I don't know why this idea of a cleft lip came about. I'll search for some info. Her family is Hispanic, so I don't know if this occurs just in Hispanic circles in a cultural sense. All I can say is that these pregnant women have missed out on some good eclipses!

Is anyone familiar with this?