Picking up pennies

Whenever I walk by any change on the ground I get the biggest urge to pick it up and I can’t help myself. You can ask my family members or my girlfriend, there has been times where we were walking somewhere and in a hurry and I stopped to grab up one penny.  There’s just something about money on the ground that makes me stop whatever I’m doing and pick it up.

Everyone always makes fun of me when I pick up change, but I don’t care. I’m hoping that I’m not the only one that does this, but I’m not ashamed that I do it. In my eyes, money is money. No matter if it is a penny or a 20 dollar bill I’m going to pick it up. There’s no reason for perfectly good money to go to waste by sitting on the ground as people walk by it.

I feel like wherever I go I find money on the ground, it’s really weird. I could be in the mall, walking down random stairs, or getting out of the car and I’ll see money just sitting there. It’s probably because people don’t value change as much as they should. They part with it like it’s no big deal and that it’s just a hassle to have. It may be true that it is a hassle to carry around change, but it is worth it.

Change really adds up over time. Think of when you were a kid and you had a piggy bank. It’s the same thing. If you pick up the change you find on the ground and you don’t touch that money at all it will add up and help you out in a time of need. It’s simple really. Before you know it you’ll have $300 and be able to get yourself out of a tough situation. My girlfriend and I saved change for our whole senior year and we used it to buy a hamster (which was probably not a good use of it but she is so adorable) and to buy dinner and other miscellaneous things. Every penny I have picked up was worth it.

Sometimes after I come out of a store I feel generous and drop coins on purpose. You might think that this is me not caring about change, but it isn’t that at all. I remember that when I was younger I used to love finding change on the ground because I was a kid and a penny felt like so much to me. I drop change on purpose in hopes that I can make a little boy’s day. It’s just a small act, but as a kid finding a bunch of change on the ground can really make your day.  

I urge you to think twice when you walk by some change. It’ll help you more than it can hurt you. What do you have to lose? Or don’t pick the change up because I’m perfectly happy picking up the change that you just stroll by and don’t bother with. Whether you pick it up or not isn’t really my concern, I just hope that you value change more because in reality it is money and does have worth. Judge me if you want, but I’m going to continue to pick up pennies.

-Eric Proulx