Chuckie wouldn’t stoop over to pick up a penny. He couldn’t be bothered for a lousy penny. What good was a penny these days?. He also wouldn’t stoop over for a nickel or a dime. A quarter- maybe, maybe not. He’d see his wife reach down and pick up a penny and make fun of her. He did that until she told him why she did it.

“We put found pennies in a jar and give it to the church. It isn’t much but it’s something”, she quietly told him.

Chuckie thought that one over and started stooping for pennies. Then he started believing that not stooping for a penny would put a curse on him. Not stooping over would send him to Hell. It would make living a bitch too. Now, his wife never said that. She told him it didn’t mean anything if he didn’t want to do it. Chuckie believed her, sort of, but kept thinking about Hell and bad luck.

Something bad would happen and he’d think, I must have not seen a penny laying there. As time went by got to telling God that he didn’t see the penny, honest! He got to where he’d walk with his head down, looking for pennies.

“Honey, your posture is getting bad. Does your back hurt?”, his wife would ask with concern.

Chuckie was too embarrassed to admit he was afraid he’d miss a penny and something terrible might happen or he’d go to Hell.

“Yea, my back’s been actin’ up a little”.

“Maybe you should see a doctor about it”, she told him.

Yea, a head doctor. Passing up a penny had nothing to do with things going wrong and it wasn’t going to send him to Hell. Other things might but not stooping to scoop up a penny. Still, why take the chance?

Chuckie stooped over to pick up a penny and found out it was a Euro. Euro? Does that count? It wasn’t American money and couldn’t be spent unless you passed it off as a penny. What would you buy that you’d need to pass off a fake penny? Chuckie tossed that Euro as far as he could. Tossing that phony penny made him feel good until he started having second thoughts about it being a Euro. Was it? Was it, for sure? Did I just punch my ticket to Hell? Is that truck going to jump the curb and take me out and send me to Hell at the same time?

He got to where if he didn’t find a penny he would go looking until he did. Phone booths were a good place to look. Parking lots were a good source too. He was surprised at how many people wouldn’t stoop to pick up a penny even if they had dropped it. People got to thinking Chuckie was nuts, scrounging around for pennies.