The Half Penny

Darlene walked through the door with a heavy feeling in her chest. The house was empty and dark. She couldn’t believe that her grandma Dorothy was really gone. Dorothy raised Darlene since she was just 9 years old after her parents got killed by a drunk unlicensed driver on their wedding anniversary. They were on their way to the airport for a romantic trip to Paris... Even though she was just a child, Darlene was old enough to know what had happened and it broke her heart forever. She only had her grandmother for most of her life and loved her more than anyone in the world. Losing her was truly devastating. The past few years had been a series of hardship and misfortune for Darlene. She was in the middle of a divorce after being married for 6 years. She also lost a child to a stillbirth a couple years back. Darlene sank deeply in depression, making her unable to work, so she left her job as a school principle.

Entering her childhood home, now empty, made her feel defeated in life. She sat on the old couch in her grandma’s living room and cried for a long time until finally fell asleep.

The next day, Darlene decided to clean up the house and make it her permanent home. There was nothing left for her in the big city. Even though she knew everyone would think she’s crazy, she wanted to move back to her little town in Nebraska. Darlene was always very fond of it. She remembered growing up, all of her classmates so desperately wanted to leave , but not her. She was sad when had to leave for collage. Later she met her husband , found a job and life kept her away, but she always wanted to come back…

While cleaning and organizing her new old home, Darlene saw the calendar on the wall and realized it was almost Easter time. She thought of all the beautiful baskets, colorful eggs and bunny figurines her grandmother used to buy for her. She smiled and climbed up to the attic where the holiday decorations were stored. She started going through the old dusty boxes, softly sobbing as she walked down memory lane.. Darlene was there for hours. She found her old toys and books. She always loved reading…

As she was browsing through, she noticed a little black notebook she’d never seen before. It had a leather cover and a lock on it. “What could that be? Where is the key?”- she wondered. Suddenly she remembered on her grandmother’s keychain, there was a little golden key that Dorothy will never tell her about. She would ask and ask but the answer was always: “ You will know one day, but not today…”

Darlene rushed to her grandma’s room, grabbed the tiny key and sure enough, it opened the little black book. It was old. The pages were yellow and quite wrinkled. She started reading and tears built up inside her eyes: “ Dear Darlene, my sweet child, I thank God every day for having you as my granddaughter. You are so beautiful, kind and smart. I am so proud of you. Life hasn’t been nice to you, but you always try to smile through your tears. You have a strong, but good heart. I love you so much. If you are reading this, I am probably not there anymore, but worry not, I will always be with you as long as you remember me and carry the memories in your heart. I know you were so curious about the little golden key, so I will tell you the secret I carried with me my whole life. When I was still a young girl at the bank…” Dorothy was a cashier in the town bank. She worked there for 40 years and thanks to that job, she was able to survive after her husband died from cancer. He was a hardworking man. A miner. The illness took him fast when he was still young, leaving Dorothy alone to take care of their daughter- Diana, Darlene’s mom.

Darlene was reading through her tears: “… one day I came across a penny. But it was no ordinary penny. Something was different about it, so I looked closer and realized that instead of one cent, it said “ half cent.” How was that possible, I didn’t know, I still don’t. Some mistake during manufacturing I guess. So, I quickly pulled a penny from my wallet and exchanged it for this half penny. It cost me many sleepless nights after, because it felt like I stole. Even though I was convincing myself that I had replaced it with a whole penny, which is more valuable, I knew this rare coin must be worth a lot of money. So I am putting it in the back of this book and hoping that you will find it and use the money for good. And I know you will, my sweet child. Because you have a heart of gold.”

Darlene was so confused, surprised, shocked, saddened and all emotions were hitting her all at once. Her heart was beating fast. She turned the book to the last page and saw a tiny blue velvet envelope. She opened it, and there it was. The half cent coin…

Darlene couldn’t sleep much that night. She was anxiously awaiting the morning. At dawn, Darlene jumped in her car and drove to the closest antique shop. It was 75 miles away. She arrived just as it was opening. Abe’s antiques. Darlene went in and a very nice old man, seemingly in his late 80’s, greeted her:

- Good morning, young lady. How may I help you?

- Ummm, I would like to get something appraised.- she replied with a trembling voice.

- Sure. What is it?

Darlene took out the coin and handed it to him.

- Oh my God! This can’t be! Where did you find this, child?- the surprise and shock on the old man’s face were beyond words, he was speechless.

- My grandmother left it to me after she passed away. Do you know what it is?

- Of course I do! This store was my grandfather’s. Abraham, Abe’ s antiques. He loved this place. He put in a lot of work, so it is the best store of its kind in all of Nebraska. But there was this one thing he could never find for his collection. I remember when I was just a little boy, grandpa Abe would tell me stories about it. Many years ago, there was a coin manufacturing facility in the area. The rumors had it that one day, one of the new workers there made a mistake and minted “half cent “ coins instead of one cent. The mistake was immediately detected and the defective pennies were discarded. All but one. Nobody knew where it went. With time it became just an urban legend. But my grandpa believed it existed somewhere and looked for it in hopes to one day have it displayed in his store. Unfortunately, he never found it. But now, almost 80 years later, it stands before me. In my hand.

- Wow, I never knew. This is amazing!

- It sure is. And ironically, this coin that represents less than a cent, is actually worth $20,000. I will write you a check right away if you are willing to sell it.

- $20,000?!? Are you sure? This is a lot of money! You must be joking!- Darlene felt like this was all a dream.

- I would never joke about that, child. So what do you desire to do?

Darlene stared at the coin in disbelief. She remembered her grandma’s words and wish. To use the money from this half a penny for a good cause.

- Ok, I will sell it. – She said confidently.

- Great! Oh what a glorious day!- the old man was filled with excitement and he could not hide it. – I now have the most valuable thing I can leave to my family- hope. Hope that dreams come true…

For the first time in a long time Darlene felt peace in her soul. She was grateful not as much for the money, as for the feeling of hope. She now believed that life can be good and dreams come true. She was no longer afraid of starting a new life in the little town.

Darlene used a small portion of the money to fix the leaking sink and other wears and tears in her grandma’s home. Leaving the big city was a really positive change for Darlene. Her depression was getting better and she was excited to work again. She got a job as a history teacher at the local school she herself attended as a child, and donated the rest of the money for new equipment and renovation. It gave her a warm feeling of fulfillment to see smiles on the children’s faces. Darlene was grateful because she finally felt home. She was happy.