Why? Because it is about appreciating the smallest things in life and reminding myself to look for value in what I commonly perceive as worthless. I wrote another post about it a year later here.
Today, I'm writing a third post. Because, as you can tell, the penny matters to me.
I still pick coins up when I see them. But these days, they're becoming much rarer. In case you hadn't heard, they (the government) stopped production of the penny in 2025 because it costs more to make than it's worth. Something like four cents for every one cent produced.
While I appreciate this (very small) governmental money-saving endeavor, it's the beginning of the end of the way I - and many - have known and understood money. We're already digital in most of the ways we spend these days. I know I am. We don't write checks; we remit payments digitally, and going to the grocery store is an easy Apple Pay tap on my phone.
The thing about coins and dollar bills is that they make our chosen exchanges tangible. It was a part of our past; currency was something to make us human, if you will. One person exchanges money for an object or food. It was a continuation of the slow living lifestyle where we go to a store, look for what we want, then pay with actual materials. For me, using these materials less only creates an increasingly digital, lonely world.
The penny has disappeared, and so has slow living. I'm pretty sure it's all related.
I grew up hearing the change in my grandfather's and father's pockets, and the change in my grandmother's and mother's coin purses or wallets. My dad had huge tubs of accumulated coins. But my husband and adult sons don't carry change, and I rarely have change in my wallet. We're a cashless and, especially, coinless society.
Here's my concern and sadness about the penny: now that the penny is gone, this means the nickel, dime, and quarter are next on the chopping block. Prices in stores will change to the nearest dollar rather than cent (Goodwill stores already do this - they round up or down to the nearest nickel), and then, the dollar is gone too. No more paper money. Or people. We already don't need checkers at the grocery store anymore. We bag our own groceries and pay digitally. AI is taking over, and there is very little to stop it.
While this post isn't to talk about the one-world currency, or AI, or the good old days and the bad modern days, I want you to appreciate the coins out there right now, as this is written. To notice that penny at your feet when you step out of the car, or the random dime on the ground at the checkout line. Because a day will come when all the pennies have been picked up with no more to drop. All the dimes are gone. The nickels are melted down. And quarters? Well, as my future grandchildren might ask, "What's a quarter?"
The good news is that pennies are still out there, even if not produced by our mint, and are considered worthless. I picked one up yesterday, and after weeks of not coming across one, it was a welcome sight. I was relieved. People still carry change!
If you walk by a quarter, pick it up. A dime or a nickel, pick those up too. If you pass a penny, smile and say "Holy Moly," and pick it up because it's no longer made. And, it's a reminder of the way we used to buy things. Pick that penny up and save it so you can show your great-grandchildren what "change" looked like.
While our digital world is easier and faster, it's taken away the value of the person and the exchange of our physical products. We've been replaced by machines - machines to take our digital money, and machines in our hands (phones) to pay for things.
But things change, and change changes. Literally.
The penny is a little bit like stepping back in time, and with a slow living lifestyle, we get to appreciate these little (yet very big) things in life. If there ever was anything little and insignificant, it's the penny. But now more than ever is the time to appreciate it.
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