Heading into the weekend with a fury…and I could definitely use a little extra cash. My wallet is completely void of paper money. Happens sometimes…even to the best of us. I hate being cash-less. Like when your co-worker asks if she can pick up some lunch for you…you reach into your purse…you see the empty space where your cash used to be…you smirk and say “no thanks, I brought a can of soup from home.” Ug!
Being armed only with credit cards and coins bugs me. I never charge things under $10. And, there’s nothing worse than counting out $1.69 in change for a coffee at the drive-up window. It would be just like me to drop a handful of nickels onto the pavement while attempting a hand-to-hand coin toss through the Starbucks drive-up window. I would drive away before collecting fallen pieces of silver off the ground…unless, of course, I was in dire need of caffeine. There are few times in my life where I would have crawled around on oil-stained pavement for a Café Mocha.
Almost everyone I know has a coin collection area in their car. Mine is the ashtray, now spilling over into the cup holder. Every once in a while I do an empty-out into the larger, more impressive coin collection jar that gracefully decorates my kitchen counter.
When the jar fills up, the coins get emptied into their final resting place – a cardboard box under the counter. Every few years, I head to Coin Star for a cash-in. The amount is usually shockingly high. I’m also super relieved that my change box is finally empty! I smile to myself and think…No More Change!!
But then it happens…I head out with my new crisp bills and hand them over to cashiers…to waiters…to bartenders. And what do I get back…a coin.
It goes from purse…to ashtray…to jar…to box. Blah!
That’s the thing about change. It’s always collecting somewhere. Penny by penny. Quarter by quarter. Adding up fast without us even noticing. It feels soooo good when our collection jars and boxes are empty, but they don’t stay empty for long.
As I head into the last weekend of 39th year and endure the funny cards and taunts from friends about having to face a 4 as the first number of my age, I’ve been thinking about change. Change can’t be stopped and we shouldn’t try to stop it. If we wish that things would stay just like they are…or, if we long for how things used to be…we will drive ourselves crazy.
Mrs. Gump says that life is like a box of chocolates. I say that life is like trading in a $5 bill for an espresso and $1.23 in change. Every day, we trade in our time for experiences…and with them…come change. Let’s live life with all of the vibrancy and vitality that we can give it. Let’s remember that change is supposed to happen. Otherwise, life would be kinda boring…wouldn’t it?
What have been the biggest changes in your life? Do you have any tips about how to embrace change in positive ways?
The Chameleon's Backbone 