After reluctantly seeing Lana off to her 1st period class, Chris had gotten a message from Aziraphale, asking him to cover class today. He quickly showered, printed out the lesson information from his email and orbed to J,GOB so he could provide some coffee and pastries.

As such, when the students arrived, they would find Chris sitting on the desk in the front of the room and a selection of goodies on a side table.

"Morning," Chris said, once everyone had arrived and taken their seats. He was frowning a little when he realized that there were a few people missing that he had expected to see. "Aziraphale couldn't make it today, but he sent me his lesson plans."


Prophecies are used in many societies as part of everyday life. Whether it's consulting an almanac to check the predicted weather or a special date or to find the best time to plant a crop, or the belief that the appearance of certain animals or numbers predicts a specific outcome, nearly everyone uses the concept of divination to help make important decisions. Many of the ideas that are labeled as superstitions are in fact simple forms of divination.


Have you ever heard the call of an owl and believed that someone must have died, or dropped a fork and planned for visitors, or had an itchy nose and thought it meant you'd be meeting a stranger? Have you ever flipped a coin to help you pick one option over another, or believed that seeing a woman in a blue hat meant good luck for your upcoming test? Have you ever peeled an apple to find out the initial of your future sweetheart or saw a shooting star and took it be a good omen for that day? These are all subtle ways that people incorporate divination into their daily lives.


A few more examples of everyday forms of prophecy:

--If a girl puts a sprig of rosemary herb and a silver sixpence under her pillow on Halloween night, she will see her future husband in a dream.

--The old Celtic custom was to light great bonfires on Halloween, and after these had burned out to make a circle of the ashes of each fire. Within this circle, and near the circumference, each member of the various families that had helped to make a fire would place a pebble. If, on the next day, any stone was out of its place, or had been damaged, it was held to be an indication that the one to whom the stone belonged would die within twelve months.

--If bats come out early and fly around playfully, then it is a sign of good weather to come.

--Peel an apple from top to bottom. The person with the longest unbroken peel would be assured the longest life. If you threw the apple peel over your shoulder, the initial it forms upon landing is the initial of your future mate.

--If a bee enters your home, it's a sign that you will soon have a visitor. If you kill the bee, you will have bad luck, or the visitor will be unpleasant.

--If someone is sweeping the floor and sweeps over your feet, you'll never get married.

--To drop a comb while you are combing your hair is a sign of a coming disappointment.


"He also wanted me to remind you all about the special project next week. Next Tuesday during second period, we will be meeting at the Perk for an extra credit project. Throughout second period, you will be giving free fortune readings to anyone who comes by and asks for one. This is not a required activity. Extra credit will be applied to participants, but the attendance requirement will be waved for that day. You can probably email or call him with any questions about it.

There's also a discussion topic. Can games of chance be a form of prophecy? If you flip a coin or draw lots, are the results pre-determined? What kinds of signs and omens do you incorporate into your daily beliefs? Break up into small groups to discuss."

He looked around anxiously after he finished the lecture and was very disturbed to realize that Lana hadn't made it to class.