Pennies from Heaven

My grandmother loved to find money (I mean, in fairness, who doesn't). She'd bend for every coin, nothing too small. Once, when on a grocery shopping errand (she never learned to drive so she was fully dependent on my grandfather to get her anywhere) she found penny after penny, coin after coin. She'd clap and laugh. But what she did not see, was that my grandfather had put a hole in the side of a plastic bag and was strategically dropping coins throughout the store for her to find. It was in simple acts like that where my grandparents showed me how to love. They showed me the importance of bringing joy to others and in finding joy in the little things.

Someone told my mother, once, that when you find a penny on the ground, it is a gift from a loved one, no longer with us. And somehow, this became family lore.

The first mother's day without my grandmother, and the first one having my daughters - our family went out to dinner to celebrate. And in the parking lot, my daughter (whose middle name was chosen to honor my grandmother) found a quarter. And then my other daughter found a quarter. And just like that, my grandmother showed up.

Now, I don't know if I really believe in messages beyond the grave - but I know that 50 cents caused my family great joy in the midst of grief. And sometimes, that's all we need in this life.