Journal of a Living Lady #193

 

Nancy White Kelly

 

 

It is my firm belief that everybody ought to have a hobby. Hobbies are distractions from the trials of life and from the mundane routines that turn us into habitual robots.

 

One of my hobbies is numismatics. That is a high-fallutin’ word for a coin collecting. If you are a thieving soul, let me assure you that Buddy and I keep minimal cash at home. You must have money to hoard it. Most of our capital gets dropped in the piggy bank on the way to bed.  

 

Corruption in the big cities is threatening. The mountain border patrol should do a better job. Criminal-minded people are managing to morph into our scenery.  Some hide quite well. Even the red-faced F.B.I. can’t find the illusive red-nosed reindeer man.

 

The main reason you wouldn’t want to attempt to rob our house is that Oppie, our Chihuahua, packs a pistol…a whopping 22-magnum. Oppie has been deputized and takes her responsibilities seriously. This four-pound, four-legged sheriff once took a justified bite of our son's you know where.

 

Though a retired educator due to my cancer, I am a continuous student of the past. I love the feel of ancient objects. In my collection is an irregular-shaped bronze coin from the days of Julius Caesar. How often I have wondered what it might have bought in Rome.

 

I also have a German coin with the swastika engraved. That historical era fascinates me probably because of the personal connection. Adolph Hitler was an evil person who affected the course of history. Because of him, and the resultant military draft, there was yet another pink blanket in 1944. When I study this five mark silver coin, I hear the sinister echo of a grim war mocking the joyous proclamation of my soldier father: “It’s a girl.”