rrrr
11-13-2002, 12:32 AM
Last night, I emptied my pockets as I always do before tossing my clothes in the hamper. As is my usual custom, I examined the pennies in my pocket before throwing them in a jar on the dresser. This ritual has afforded me some simple enjoyments. As I look at the dates on the pennies, I am taken back to a particular year in my past. Most of the time it is a happy memory, sometimes not.
On certain days I will find a penny that signifies a year of particular importance; such was the case last night, November 11th. Veteran's Day, the day we set aside to honor those who have served our nation.
I knew right away the penny was special. This penny had the dull patina of one made long ago, when our country and its people were solid like the copper that had been stamped to make this coin. Like many things in our lives, the penny has been devalued and is only a facade of its former self. Now pennies are made from zinc, with copper plating a few microns thick.
I looked at it closer, and saw the wheat emblem on the reverse side. I turned it over and looked at the date it was minted, 1944. Nineteen Hundred and Forty Four was a pivotal year in the history of the United States, and indeed the world. As World War II raged on, the tide had begun to turn in the Allies favor. Yet, still to come were the terrible losses and depravations of the Battle of the Bulge and the continuation of the fight to win the precious island stepping stones to the Japanese mainland.
However, things had begun to improve, and this penny made in 1944 was a symbol of that. Just the year before, the suddenly precious copper used to make pennies had been requisitioned for the war effort. Most of the pennies made in 1943 were zinc. The copper used for production of artillery shells and bombs was so important that the constructors of the Manhattan Project's Oak Ridge Y-12 gaseous diffusion facility used over $300 Million of pure silver borrowed from the U.S. Treasury to make electrical bus bars.
As I held this object in my hand, I thought of the parallels between it and those who have stood in harm's way for our country. By itself, a penny is practically worthless. How many have you seen on the ground and not even bothered to pick up? However, even the lowly penny can become valuable when combined with millions of other pennies.
Such is true of our veterans. Each man or woman, an individual, has very little to offer against a mighty foe. Yet in the darkest days of our nation, these brave people banded together. They forsook their personal wants to ascribe to a greater calling; to protect the United States of America and her people. Massed together in rigidly trained units, the armies of our country have known no equal on the battlefields.
Many years have passed since my penny was made. What was at one time shiny and sharply defined has become aged and worn. Like the brave citizens of our country that served in 1944, it has seen better days. But even after sixty years, almost a lifetime, it still has every bit of value it originally held. Made from an alloy of almost pure copper, it has withstood every circumstance it has encountered.
The veterans of our country are a lot like my penny. Simple, durable, unassuming. And yes, valuable.
Thank you.
[ November 13, 2002, 06:06 PM: Message edited by: rrrr ]
On certain days I will find a penny that signifies a year of particular importance; such was the case last night, November 11th. Veteran's Day, the day we set aside to honor those who have served our nation.
I knew right away the penny was special. This penny had the dull patina of one made long ago, when our country and its people were solid like the copper that had been stamped to make this coin. Like many things in our lives, the penny has been devalued and is only a facade of its former self. Now pennies are made from zinc, with copper plating a few microns thick.
I looked at it closer, and saw the wheat emblem on the reverse side. I turned it over and looked at the date it was minted, 1944. Nineteen Hundred and Forty Four was a pivotal year in the history of the United States, and indeed the world. As World War II raged on, the tide had begun to turn in the Allies favor. Yet, still to come were the terrible losses and depravations of the Battle of the Bulge and the continuation of the fight to win the precious island stepping stones to the Japanese mainland.
However, things had begun to improve, and this penny made in 1944 was a symbol of that. Just the year before, the suddenly precious copper used to make pennies had been requisitioned for the war effort. Most of the pennies made in 1943 were zinc. The copper used for production of artillery shells and bombs was so important that the constructors of the Manhattan Project's Oak Ridge Y-12 gaseous diffusion facility used over $300 Million of pure silver borrowed from the U.S. Treasury to make electrical bus bars.
As I held this object in my hand, I thought of the parallels between it and those who have stood in harm's way for our country. By itself, a penny is practically worthless. How many have you seen on the ground and not even bothered to pick up? However, even the lowly penny can become valuable when combined with millions of other pennies.
Such is true of our veterans. Each man or woman, an individual, has very little to offer against a mighty foe. Yet in the darkest days of our nation, these brave people banded together. They forsook their personal wants to ascribe to a greater calling; to protect the United States of America and her people. Massed together in rigidly trained units, the armies of our country have known no equal on the battlefields.
Many years have passed since my penny was made. What was at one time shiny and sharply defined has become aged and worn. Like the brave citizens of our country that served in 1944, it has seen better days. But even after sixty years, almost a lifetime, it still has every bit of value it originally held. Made from an alloy of almost pure copper, it has withstood every circumstance it has encountered.
The veterans of our country are a lot like my penny. Simple, durable, unassuming. And yes, valuable.
Thank you.
[ November 13, 2002, 06:06 PM: Message edited by: rrrr ]