Coin Toss

Those with US coin currency in your pocket have seen the various backings on quarters over the last decade. Between 1999 and 2009, the US Mint released new quarters, a few each year, through banks within the State represented on the back.

I remember waiting for the initial release. It wasn't long before the shiny new quarters were in my possession, as I lived on the east coast, where the first coins were released. As the releases continued year-after-year, however, it took more time to see them in the local cash registers.

But they did get there.

This is not to share the story of the US quarter, but as an illustration of how much our lives are integrated with others. Those quarters would not arrive locally unless carried beyond the State borders in which it was issued. It may have been held in many purses and pockets between the initial issue of a bank and your hand.

There is no doubt that several of these quarters are now outside the US borders as well. There are banks all around the world that exchange US currency, and countless international travelers that may hang onto a few coins as souvenirs, much as my dad had done in his international travels.

Think how many lives this quarter has touched in its journey, and how many more it will touch once it leaves your hand. We never know where each coin goes. But we do know one thing.

Our lives are interwoven together.

Even as a quarter passes hand-to-hand,

Blessings can travel over many a land.

~ ESA