When my car breaks down, my mother reminds me that bad things come in threes. “Be extra careful,” she says. She means, Fate’s watching you.

“How will being careful help?” I ask. I mean, If we can’t change our fate.

I buy a new canister of mace, just in case.

Larina Warnock works at a large school district in Southern Oregon helping young people prepare for work or college. She enjoys writing for 50-Word Stories while tossing a squeaky for her fetch-obsessed Boston terrier.