Copper’s Not Just An Element on The Periodic Table:

A penny for your thoughts, gov’nor?  A penny saved is a penny earned?  Anyone who’s heard these old phrases will probably think fondly of their parents.  Or, will cringe.  I hope that it’s the prior.  I hope.  Why?  Because pennies are often the afterthoughts, the under-appreciated denomination in the loose-change department.  We step on them, lose them, and are short of them at the 99 cents store.  C’mon, admit it!  The value is often exceeded by it’s overall worth to me.  I guess worth is measured in varying degrees. 

What could be the real reason behind my seemingly good fortune?  Well, I’ve looked for multiple explanations.  I mean, I pretty much find at least one penny a day.  So is there a reason why I seem to notice what others overlook?  Is it all just chance?  Dumb-luck?  So I went to the sometimes reliable, sometimes ridiculous internet to see if anyone had any similar instances.  Turns out, many did.  That’s right.  The old saying about “pennies from heaven” is the atypical belief to a phenomenon that–if you believe this guy–may be “conjured” into reality.  Call it a self-fulfilling prophecy, if you will.  Others feel that the pennies are messages from angels or the dearly departed.  I may not agree that there is some angel at work or that one of my deceased relatives is intentionally dropping pennies just for me to find them, but I can state that I find pennies.  A lot. 

I think that nobody in the world can truly understand how mystifying it is for me to find these treasures.   Good old Abe would probably turn over in his grave to see people discard and plainly ignore the money that bears his likeness.  Think about it: why would anyone discard money?  And yet, we often find these pennies in the gutter like so much trash.  I hold it akin to stepping over the corpses of soldiers on a battlefield.  Why?  Because it’s still money.  Sure, it takes a hundred of ‘em to make a dollar.  Sure, sometimes they’re inconvenient and less popular than those larger-denominations like nickels, dimes and quarters.  But are they any less important I tell you?  Huh??

*ahem*

But the true magic happens when you illustrate just how wonderful the sometimes shiny, sometimes dull-sheen circular objects are.  They can be found in remote areas as well as high-traffic places.  Sometimes they come in handy just when you need them or when you least expect it.  I, myself have made a game out of finding them: walking always with my head lowered to the ground, perusing the surroundings. 

So when next you see a penny in the street, go ahead and pick it up.  With your left hand, okay?  (Don’t EVEN get me started on the Puerto-Rican wive’s tales.  I’ll save that for another post).