A Penny for Your Thoughts!

A Penny for Your Thoughts!

By Allen Merritt ©2018

I found a penny today.

I find them a lot.

Suddenly, I look down and spot a little glimmer of copper stamped with the image of Abraham Lincoln.  It is one of those little things in life which serves to remind me of how great small things are. And even though it doesn’t offer much monetarily, if you collect enough of them, value can be found.

Moreover, pennies collected are like positivity gems. Pennies are considered by some to be lucky when you find them just as are four leaf clovers. We are reminded not to sweat the small stuff as pennies represent the epitome of the smallest denomination of money and at the same time we are to recognize how small stuff grows into something bigger over time. It is where we place our value which determines the outcome and contributes to our best perspectives.

In any case, whenever I find one I smile and feel good for no particular reason but to feel good…and special. So every time I collect a penny it is like the universe offering me a penny for my thoughts. So here are a few...thoughts that is!

Pennies may not be considered as anything important.

I beg to differ.

While you may not want to sweat the small stuff, it pays not to ignore them.

Did you know that a U.S. penny is worth .07 Chinese Yuan? Of course that is rounded up from .069233 Yuan, which is 1/14 of a single Yuan. A single bus ride costs one Yuan. Therefore, when you add it all up, it takes at least 14 American pennies to ride the bus in China. If we consider food prices for rice and flour in China, it costs about 2-3 Yuan per 500 grams. Interestingly, it would cost 28-42 pennies to buy some food to eat if you were hungry. We're talking pennies per day! Of course, rates fluctuate, but currently it takes 14 cents to equal 1 Yuan. Google it! 

Imagine how that changes our perspective from something negative to something positive.

A penny here and a penny there could make a difference. 

Some folks will throw their extra coins into a fountain or “wishing well.” In many cases, the fountain will eventually be cleaned out and those pennies go to help a charitable organization in need of extra funding. That is a positive thing!

Other people discard their pennies as nothing at all. They want nothing to do with them as if they are a complete nuisance or inconvenience, which is probably why I find them all the time while out walking. These pennies may end up tossed in the streets, thrown into tips jars, lost in the couch or simply left on the counter or floor when they are offered back as change or fall from our grip. I have literally seen people thrown them into a garbage can deemed as trash.

Even homeless people understand the value of a penny as it adds sustenance when combined with a few other coins. Tip jars eventually grow as more coins are added and eventually, over time, something good comes out of what began as something so small.

It may be small, but not necessarily minute.

Remember the saying, “We may be small small, but we are mighty?”

This is what finding a penny is like.

Big things can come in small packages. In other words, never underestimate your value, your worth or what you have to offer. You can accomplish a lot with very little. And that offering is worth something to someone. Just like a simple smile, happy greeting or inquiry as to how someone is doing. There is a benefit to every little thing.

A penny reminds me to be thankful and grateful for the small things in life. A penny teaches me the value of everything and how one thing benefits another, interconnects with another and contributes greatly to the existence of another.

How can you go wrong with this kind of thinking?

A penny is a gift. It is not a lost worthless relic. It provides a bit of sustenance just when you least expect it. In this world every little bit counts when so many have great need. A penny saved is a penny earned, right?

In conclusion, never doubt yourself or what you have to offer. It can positively impact not only your life, but the life of many other individuals. Do something to help yourself and serve others as you can. Watch the negative images melt away. In the last couple of weeks, I decided to test myself in this thought process. I went to the store and bought food items to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, cookies, nuts, water and sodas and I made lunch bags and drove around offering people on the streets something to eat. I knew it was not a lot to offer, but in those moments I could see how important and valuable it was in lifting the spirits of someone in need if only for the moment.

Next time you spot a penny, pick it up! Pick it up for good luck. Pick it up as a reminder to value little things. Pick it up to help alter negative perspective. Pick it up to focus on the positive and the good.

Enjoy the next moment as positively as you can!

Cheers!