God (and Dad's) Lucky Penny

GOD (and dad’s) LUCKY PENNY

When I was a young boy my father would bring home small trinkets after working 15 hours at his co-owned service station located in a rural farming community in Northern California. One night when he came home he held out his hand—a loosely clenched fist and motioned for me to open it. I pried his fingers loose of the treasure that was concealed within. A small bottle, just large enough to encapsulate a penny emerged. I held the smooth glass and viewed the copper penny shining inside the sparkling clear bottle. This was special.
I had great respect for my father and appreciated the gift. He was a hard-working man and had experienced first hand the Great Depression. He looked at me with a loving smile as I held the penny and said, “as long as you have this penny you will never be broke.” Although he said it jokingly his words were profound and somehow resonated even though I didn’t have a real grasp of the value of money. I must admit that it has taken many years for his message to be fully appreciated in both spirit and intent. I was about to re-learn a valuable lesson my father taught me over 40 years ago.

GOD, as the Holy Father, teaches in much the same way as my dad. One afternoon as I was running around our nearby lake, financially secure as a university professor, I passed by a weathered penny. How many pennies had I passed by since I was a child growing up in rural Northern California? As customary, I ran past it continuing on with my “aerobic mission.” I began to remember the penny-in-the-bottle from my childhood and recognized the value of the “lucky penny” that GOD had placed in my path. I stopped my run (on a dime?) and turned back to retrieve the coin that represents the smallest monetary value in our economic system. Surely my time as a professor is worth more than a penny for my trouble. Yes, the penny for all practical purposes is worthless. But there I was, stooping in the middle of the lake road hunting for the worthless.

I searched and searched and could not find the penny! Astonished, I wondered how something so “worthless” could be so elusive!? These things are left all over for the taking…even on restaurant counters where paying customers trade “real” money for food and service. Pennies are left as a token---some strange way of helping a complete stranger out with change so he or she does not need to bother with worthless pennies. It struck me that this was GOD’s Lucky Penny. HE did not intend for me to possess it, rather to contemplate the value of the object.

Pennies, like far too many people (and family pets), are left behind---seemingly worthless and insignificant. The lucky penny serves as a reminder that the one hundred dollar bill found on the street may be less valuable than the discarded penny, and a humble person of limited means may be more valuable than a corrupt corporate CEO. I don’t know and it may not be for me to judge. Yet I did re-learn lessons about inherent value of objects and people who are cloaked in perceptions of “worthlessness.” Do you have a lucky penny in your life or know of someone who should be treated as one?