Every culture seems to have it’s own “magic solution” to hiccups. My grandma told me if you held your breath and dramatically touched your pointer fingers together juuust right they’d automatically go away. As an elementary schooler I remember leaning upside down against a wall with a friend as we tried to turn our heads to look at each other to see if the hiccups had gone. No dice.
Some South African methods:
1. stick a match in your hair, close to your forehead so you look quite like a unicorn
2. put paper on your forehead. This works especially well if it is toilet paper, wet it (they didn’t say with what) if that fails to work.
Today I had an obnoxiously loud bout of hiccups. Anna looks over at me while driving us home from work/volunteering at the elementary school and just laughs.
“You know, you should try putting paper on your forehead.”
Blank stare.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“No, no, no! That’s how South Africans do it.”
…tentatively I reach down and put the cute picture one of the students drew for me on my forehead, skepticism running high.
Hiccups, instantly gone.
Call me crazy, but I’m a believer. (though juries still out if this newfound belief will ever lead to sticking wet toilet paper on my forehead)
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