As my beloved and I were having our morning coffee, our umbrellas were hanging off a ledge next to our table. It has been raining for days in the Croatian capital, and so we go nowhere without them. When one of the waitresses passed by our table, she accidentally pulled my beloved’s umbrella down. As it fell to the floor, it sprung open. “My apologies,” exclaimed the waitress. “It’s a sign of bad luck, too!” My beloved wanted to know more. “Well,” sighed the waitress, who was visibly distressed, “it’s a sign that the love of your life will marry someone else.” On our way home, we laughed about the whole thing. As far as I was concerned, this was yet another sign that sorcery was alive and well. Umbrellas with springs in them became the rage only a few decades ago, but their springing open accidentally is already a part of the long tradition of good and bad signs. Simply put, this is yet another sign that sorcery will never die.