It is said that a visitor once came to the home of Nobel Prize–winning physicist Niels Bohr and, having noticed a horseshoe hung above the entrance, asked incredulously if the professor believed horseshoes brought good luck. “No,” Bohr replied, “but I am told that they bring luck even to those who do not believe in them.”
Reads like the setup of a short story. In the final act the horseshoe would be physically important, either to help the protagonist¹ and make their point or hurt them² and disprove the claim.
¹ E.g. it contains an inscription which provides a vital clue.
I like the 2nd ending, but when they're taken to the hospital for horseshoe-induced head trauma, an early-stage brain tumor is discovered & operated on, thus ultimately saving their life.
Reminds me of this quote: "Do not be ashamed to speak nonsense! You only have to be attentive to your own nonsense." (Wittgenstein, Miscellaneous Remarks (Vermischte Bemerkungen))
