I recently cleaned out some of my dresser drawers and found an old wallet I used to carry all the time. I quit carrying it the year before Pap died.
I was in my office at work when I got the call that Pap had fallen and I needed to come home cause he was in a lot of pain.
I grabbed all my stuff and ran down the hallway of the McSwain building and out the back door where my car was parked. While I was running the coffee left in my cup from that morning spilled out into my purse and wet the wallet.
Although it was stained with coffee and I had to take all my stuff out of it I kept it because it was such a quality piece. Miss Cindy found it for me at a thrift store. Neither she nor I would ever pay the original sticker price that was on it, even though it was likely a deserving price since it would literally last a life time if taken care of.
When I came across it the other day I decided I was ready for a change and would start carrying the old wallet again. When I was swapping my driver’s license and other things from one wallet to another I found a Christmas present that goes with me every time I get in the car and leave the house.
It has ties back to those days at the college too.
During the years I worked there I gained some of the best friends I’ve ever had. There’s four of us who still get together throughout the year for birthdays, Christmas, and just because we want to.
A few Christmases ago one of the girls, Shannon, gifted the others and me a two dollar bill for Christmas. She said if we put it in our pocketbook and carried it with us we’d never be completely broke—we’d always have two dollars thanks to her 🙂
That two dollar bill has been with me ever since then. I’d never spend it unless I absolutely had to, but every time I see it I’m reminded of Shannon’s generosity and the great friendship the four of us are blessed with.
Last night’s video: Cozy Christmas Story from the Mountains of Appalachia – Part 2.
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Twenty or so years ago I was at a conference in Kentucky and the afternoon outing was to go to the race track. The minimum bets are $2 so I made a couple and they paid off in $2 bills. I don’t know if all race tracks do that but I won 5 $2 bills (and lost more on other races) but I kept the bills and gave them to my nieces and nephews. They had never seen one.
My younger daughter just received a $2 bill at work the other day. A gentleman gave it to her as a tip. Their boss is nice & lets them receive tips and often people will give them a dollar, or two, after filling their propane or good customer service. I remember my mom having a couple of them. As a kid, I always loved the 50 cent pieces. They were so weighty. Are they still being minted?
Finally heard from a dear friend that I was worried about. I have been spinning her wool for 5 years now, & finally finished up all that she had. I was trying to reach her to let her know. I had been a terrible friend! I was so wrapped up in my own problems this summer that I never once called her. Turned out that she had been in & out of the hospital. She finally did get ahold of me & came for a visit last week. We made plans to do something ‘wool related’ soon & I am hoping that her health holds out. I had a dear work friend (from a past job) that I had not seen for a long time. I was driving by her house in a hurry one day. Briefly thought about popping in because my travels don’t usually take me out that way. I pushed the thought to the side, promising myself that I would make time later, and kept driving home. She passed away unexpectedly that night. There was no ‘later’. This was a person that saw me through some troubled times & was there to celebrate some of my happiest – engagement/wedding, birth of my 1st child, etc…I have not cried so hard in a long time. My own stupid selfishness. And I still have trouble learning from my mistakes, as the earlier part of this comment shows.
My favorite presents are like that $2 bill. It isn’t fancy, nor expensive but it is given with true affection.
I still have a few of the old Silver Certificates – several $1s and a $ 5. I’ll have to look to see if there’s a $ 2 in them.
My Pa didn’t like to carry a $2 bill. He said it brought him bad luck. He said it was the equivalent of the $5 gold piece (before FDR removed gold coins) which gamblers thought bad luck to carry. I like the idea of friends giving the $2 bills to each other because it definitely removes any stigma of bad luck.
I, too, remember when I got the word that Pa had died. A brother and I had taken him to the hospital the previous day – a Saturday – and sat with him through the afternoon and early evening. At 7:00 am my brother called to tell me that he had passed. I was 21 years old, and it’s been 60 years since that morning. Yes, I still grieve. Yes, I still have his wallet and his shaving bowl and brush.
On a brighter note. I really liked last night’s reading. Do I remember correctly that the story is set in the 1940s and 50s? If so, that is the time I grew up but not in the mountains. As the ninth of 9 kids, I recall how hard it was to find quiet time with either Mama or Pa. She did teach me to make biscuits but I was in my teens by then.
Great work, Tipper! Thank you for sharing so much with us, reminding us what is real and true and to be most valued in life.
Robert-thank you for sharing your memories. The book is set during the Great Depression so a little earlier 🙂
You remind me of a veteran I met back around Memorial Day. He asked me, “Are you a vet?” I said, “No sir, but my brother was in ‘Nam.” He handed me an embroidered star, (cut from the canton of a retired and donated US flag, as I found out later). And he said, “Give him this from a beat up one that came back.” I promised to do it and I mailed it to my brother. Later in talking to him I mentioned there were coin display capsules it could be kept in. He said, “I keep it in my wallet.”
What a sweet story! Isn’t it wonderful how God puts special people in our lives. A true friend is a treasure for sure and thank you for last night’s reading. Love it!! Have a blessed day everyone!!
I received a $2 bill as change several years ago and have carried it in my wallet ever since. That’s a good way to think of it…never really broke with my $2 bill haha!
I still have a $2 bill gifted from my dad that I did give to my grandson. I explained the importance. The great generation I knew treasured $2 bills and half dollars, and I am ashamed to say I am not certain why. I must research that, but seems the $2 bill was not common and may have been kept for good luck. Some of the dearest friends we have are sometimes former coworkers, because we bond with the ones we really like. Unlike family, who we lovingly accept warts and all. When my mom passed a tasty dish showed up in my frig, and it was months later that I found out it was my special friend, Dee. Somebody had just let her in while I was gone and failed to tell me. Family is wonderful, but we must never get too busy for our friends!
We gave a two dollar bill to each of our kids and grandkids one year for Christmas. Regardless of what we told them, they likely considered it “play” money. It’s a very special gift to give …and to hold onto.
Tipper, you are blessed with loving family and friends. Your good memories will help you get through the hurtful times in life.
My husband’s family gave our boys a $2 bill for birthdays and Christmas. Our boys? now are 39 & 43!!! They still have some of them . Take care and God bless ❣️
I love this story! It’s just precious!! Blessings to and always:)
What a lovely story. I think I might give this to my friends, it will make a lovely little keepsake. Wishing you and your family a happy peaceful Christmas. Love from Duncan family in Scotland ⛪
I am always amazed at how the Lord will bless us with a memory when we most need it. Have a blessed day.
There was a seafood restaurant overlooking the ocean near the Marine base Cherry Point, NC where I had to perform testing of water, etc several times a year. Either the colonel or a civilian with a high pay grade would buy my lunch at that restaurant before heading back to Fayetteville (Fatalville.) If you didn’t know- privates make little money, but it’s still better than unemployment. They always gave change of 2 dollar bills and I kept them in a Bible for the girls. I found one a few months back and put it behind my beautiful lithograph of DANIEL in the Lion’s Den and speaking of being in the Lion’s Den, I feel our whole country is being stuck up by lions without mercy…
Tipper about your memory of knowing what you did when you got the call about your daddy, after 32 years, I still remember getting the call for my daddy, it was 1:18 am on a Sat. night or Sunday morning and I was putting up the trim on a machine I was running at Michelin Tire Corp. When my friend came to get me to come to the office I told him there was no need for going to the office, I knew he had come to tell me my daddy had died.
I have given my grandsons and son $2 bills. I also keep two $50 bills, one from my wife and the other from my mother that I never intend to spend on myself, only in an extreme emergency for my boys. I have several life long friends that will either call me or I call throughout the year. I recently reconnected with a dear high school friend after not hearing or knowing where he was for 47 years. Money buys a lot of things but it can not buy true friendship. I don’t think there is a time limit for getting over grieving. I still grieve for my daddy (32 years) and other family members. I will never ever get over my wife’s death until I take my last breath on earth, I was suppose to go first.
The loss of friends and especially loved ones is something we get through – not over.
I have a few $2 bills in my wallet gifted to me by sweet special people also for the same reason. I thought I was the only one.
Richard
miss Cindy is right, I lost my mom, my dad and my great aunt all within a very short time. it is so difficult when you realize you will never have a chance to visit again
Oh goodness, what a memory. With memories that you share, I find some that I had not thought about in a long time. Years ago, attending a Red Hat luncheon to celebrating St Patrick’s Day, a good friend and I took a picture, her with green-framed fake glasses and me with a green tiara. That picture is magnetted to my refrigerator. Finding out Sunday that she had passed that morning…memories…they are so important. Thanks for all you share Tipper…God Bless
Friends are the most precious thing, my best friend and I have been together 35 years, married 33. He is a blessing from God! My best girl friend and I have been friends since 7th grade and our friendship has lasted 47 years. May your friendship continue and grow!
Those old memories are always wonderful….the two dollar bill will be with you forever Tipper! Love the simplicity of this story. Be Well!
How very sweet. I have 2 girlfriends coming over tomorrow to bake Christmas cookies. We’ve been friends for over 40 years. Friends and family are the most wonderful gift .
Your posts always make me smile, thank you!
This was beautiful, Tipper. Hugs
I have a very special wallet. It belonged to my dad and it contains his drivers license, cash and certification cards he had with him when he passed. I keep the wallet in a pocket of his favorite sports coat. In another pocket, I have a bottle of his cologne—Avon Wild Country. Occasionally I take a sniff of the cologne and am reminded of him.
I love that Christmas gift story, that’s truly loyal friendship. Friends are a treasure as they accept us as we are, as Mom use to say;”warts and all”!
I love the Christmas story you are reading! God bless you and yours! Thank you❤❤
Good friends are a wonderful gift from God.
Sometimes it takes a lot of time to step beyond the grief, it’s best to let it take what it needs. I’m glad you are carrying the wallet again.
Beautifully said Miss Cindy.
“it’s best to let it take what it needs.” … so wise, so true. I was widowed in my early fifties and started a widow’s Bible study. I always tell the women to ignore prescriptions for “getting through” their grief. Everyone’s loss is different and there is no universal prescription for grief. You don’t really get through it as much as you learn to live with it…not that your heart will be veiled in black for the rest of your life – you will laugh again and enjoy life. God gives each of us a share of work for His kingdom and if we’re still here on earth, we still have work to do for Him.