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The fortunes themselves, scraps of paper, printed with purportedly “ancient words of wisdom,” were collected from hundreds of meals eaten in Asian restaurants over the last twenty years. I cannot explain my fascination for the fortunes, or why my collecting them became something of an obsession—resulting in an inability to throw them away—but their appeal seems to be worldwide (for example, they are prized in Brazil for their seeming ability to provide lottery players with winning numbers). According to Jennifer 8. Lee, author of The Fortune Cookie Chronicles, they have an enigmatic history, which most likely began in Japan and largely unheard of in mainland China.
The mystery of their origin only adds to their fascination for me.