I honestly can’t remember when-Perhaps sometime in highschool-My grandparents had given me a two-dollar bill. They told me to keep it in my wallet for good luck-The symbolism being that if you always have a dollar in your wallet you’ll never be completely broke. Well this is two dollars, so I’m twice as rich! …yeah. Technically they are correct, but I’m sure it’s some ancient cliché.

Nevertheless, that same two-dollar bill has been transferred to several wallets over the years, and is one of the things that comes into my vision daily. It has been with me through countless events in my life, both good and bad, and neutral. I’m sure it has zero accountability for anything in my day-to-day life — Except that when I see it, for that brief instant, I think about my grandparents.

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I am currently in a very loud and busy food court in Tanforan Mall. I’m waiting for a friend to get off from work. It’s the friend of that lassie from the Meet Pt. 1-We have actually become good acquaintances, if not good friends ourselves. I stated that I wouldn’t talk about that lass anymore. However, I will report that I was indeed correct in my assumptions. Well… more or less.

And I digress.

Moments ago, as I was about to gorge myself with a “Great Steak” reuben sandwich, I was interrupted by a slightly older Filipino lady who was doing a little soliciting. Some people may take the moment to verbally bash a solicitor for bothering them, especially in the middle of a meal. I’m not like that. Maybe it’s a bit naive of me to think this, but I say if someone has to solicit money in a food court at a mall, I think that person must have balls of steel, and must be desperate for help. If I am being taken, then all the power two them, cause I don’t think I’d have the guts to do what they do.

That said, I considering myself a good judge of character and I absolutely believe she is sincere.

In a nutshell, this lady named Catherine is representing her church in Vallejo, doing missionary work and trying to collect money for children in the Philippines. She spoke of the corruption in that country, and of how because of that, children are often neglected. I being a flip myself, am rather aware of the situation. Furthermore, my mother has done similar missionary work for her church, so it didn’t take much for me to believe Catherine.

So she asked for a donation-For anything I could spare. I reached down for my wallet, hoping I had a good five or ten bill or even a few singles. And of course you guessed it, the only president staring back up at me was Jefferson-All I had was my grandparents lucky two-dollar bill.
I paused for a moment and thought about my grandparents. Thought about the moment they gave me that bill-Thought about their passing-Thought about how long I had this in my possession, and about what it has come to actually symbolize.

It was never about luck. This insignificant piece of woven green cotton actually represents their love for me. It showed that they always wanted what was best for me. They wanted me to know that no matter bad it got, there was always that little piece of hope that you could hold on to.

I looked up at Catherine and said that this is all I have, and how it means a great deal to me–But I think it’s finally time to let go of my past, and grasp at the future.

Lord knows this two-dollars may have never been spent in my possession, but if it should be, then helping children is a noble cause. And I know my grandparents would have appreciated that.