Taiwan Probashi Puja Edition, 2019 | Page 19

    Taiwan Probashi: Puja, 2019      The Adventures of a Penny    Hello,   my   name   is   Penny.   I   am   a   little   penny.   Right   now,   I’m   in   Money   Heaven.   Let   me   tell   you   my   story   when   I   was on the Earth.    I   was   born   in   the   factory   of   General   Mills   in   Minnesota,   USA.   I   stayed   there   for   about   three   years,   but   my   life   there   wasn’t   fun.   Different   coins   were   separated   by   another   machine,   and   since   I   was   a   penny,   I   was   in   the   Penny   group.   The   other   pennies   used   to   bully   me   since   I   was   the   darkest   one   in   the   lot.   I   had   no   friends   and   was   extremely   lonely.   When   I   was   scooped   up   in   the   group   that   was   going   to   be   delivered   to   the   common   people,   I   was   very   delighted.   There   I   met   a   dime   and   a   nickel.   We   played   together   on   the   whole   trip.   They   were   my   first   ever   friends!   Then,   some   other   coins   and   I   were   picked   to   go   to   a   person.   The   nickel   was   one   of   them   too!   We   were   sent   to   a   chemistry   lab’s   supervisor.   We   spent   most   of   the   time   playing   and   laughing.   But   then,   the   nickel   moved   on   and   was   given   to   someone   else.   I   became   lonely   again!   Scientists   probably   are   the   messy   kinds   of   people,   you   know,   because   I   used   to   fall   on   the   ground and stayed there unnoticed for days!                        Several   days   later,   the   boss   picked   me   up   with   three   to   four   other   coins   and   gave   us   to   another   guy   in   his   lab.   I   wasn’t   too   excited   about   that   though,   because   I   would   still   be   lonely.   However,   the   man’s   daughter,   cared   for   me   and   never   left   me   on   the   floor.   I   had   a   good   time   with   her.   Whenever   she   had   a   drink,   she   would   offer   me   some   too,   as   if   I   could   drink   in   front   of   her.   She   did   not   know   that   we   the   ‘Money   People’   are   forbidden   to   show   our   activities   to   the   human   race!   One   day,   her   father   took   me   and   a   bunch   of   other   coins   to   the   store   and   gave   me   away!   I   never   saw   that   sweet   little   girl   ever   again.     By   then,   I   was   already   seven.   I   stayed   with   the   shopkeeper   for   most   of   the   following   years.   He   put   me   in   a   coin   drawer.   I   was   never   picked.   There,   I   made   more   friends:   A   dime,   a   nickel,   and   another   penny,   just   like   me.   We   four   spent   lots   of   time   together.   It   was   until   a   year   that   I   had   realized   that   the   dime   and   the   nickel   were   actually   my   old   buddies   from   the   factory!   We   used   to prank each other, because it was so fun! We pranked  the   other   penny   by   pretending   to   put   gross   things   in   her   meal!   She   was   super   angry   with   us,   because   that   was   her   favorite   kind   of   meal.   We   had   fun,   but   it   didn’t   stay   for   too   long   time.   One   by   one,   each   of   us   moved   on   until   I   was   left   alone   again.   A   few   months   after   their   departure,   when   I   was   thirteen,   the   shopkeeper   gave   me   to   a   poor   woman   and   his   little   boy.   The   boy   was   delighted   to   see   me!   He   was   certainly   very   hungry   as   he   ran   to   a   bakery   and   get   some   bread   in   exchange   for   me.   Later   that   day,   a   truck   to   deliver   bread   arrived   and   the   shopkeeper   gave   me   along   with   some   other   coins   to   the   driver. He drove the truck from Minnesota to Wyoming.    The   driver   used   to   care   for   me.   Although   not   like   the   little   girl   of   that   chemistry   lab   assistant   used   to   do,   this   driver   would   just   pick   up   any   coins   on   the   floor   and   put   them   back   in   the   drawer.   A   few   weeks   passed,   then   I   was   given   to   a   family   on   vacation   in   Wyoming.   A   little   boy   from   this   family   put   me   in   his   pocket.   A   while   later,   the   boy   stepped   out   of   the   car   and   after   a   little   walk,   I   could   hear   waterfalls.   I   heard   his   father   mentioning   about   Yellowstone   National   Park,   and   I   knew   we   were   probably   there.   Later,   the   young   boy   took   another   coin   and   me   out,   compared   to   us,   and   put   the   other   coin   in   a   machine.   He   pressed   some   buttons   and   when   she   came   out   from   the   machine,   she   was   kind   of   stretched   and   there   was   a   beautiful   map   of   Yellowstone   National   Park   on   her   body.   Oh,   I   was   so   jealous   of   her!   After   the   vacation   period,   the   father   drove   us   to   their   home   in   San   Francisco,   California.                        One   day,   the   father   brought   in   two   more   coins.   You   know   what!   They   were   the   same   dime   and   nickel!   I   was   extremely   delighted   to   see   my   first   ever   friends!   We   spent   three   years   at   that   house,   and   these   three   years   were   memorable.   We   played,   talked,   laughed,   and   giggled.   Once   the   dime,   nickel,   one   of   my   penny   friends,   and   I   pranked   another   penny   by   first,   putting   water   right   behind   her,   and   then,   scaring   her   so   much   that   she   tumbled   into   the   water!   Even   she   admitted   it   was   hilarious!   I   really   had   so   much   fun!   In   our   third   year   at   that   house,   we   were   given   to   a   person   selling   toys   in   an   amusement park.     17