A day I will never forget.....
Posted: Sat Jun 18, 2011 12:14 pmIt was back in 1966. LBJ was our new President and painful memories of JFK were still strong. The war in Viet Nam was escalating and the mothers in my town prayed it would end before their sons graduated high school. All the girls in my school loved the Beatles--especially Paul! Baseball would never be the same for us Dodger fans as Sandy Koufax was calling it quits. And the great Mickey Mantle was nearing his end and you could see it as he ran the bases or chased a fly ball. Vince Lombardi was the standard and envy of every high school football coach. And those big-block muscle cars-wow! And let's not forget the girls and their sexy "hip hugger" bell bottom pants--wow again! Steve McQueen was the fancy of countless teenage girls. Back in '66 in small town California the skies were a deep blue then, the clouds pristine white and the water sparkling clean. Gangs, drive-by shootings, home-invasion robberies?--the words didn't exist in those days. Cokes were a dime, candy bars a nickel. You and your pals could hunt 3 cent coke bottles in the morning and be stuffed with RC cola & Snickers bars by lunch time--Jesus what a great time to be a kid in the fifth grade!
Every school morning my mother would give me a quarter for my hot lunch and she would tell me not to loose it or I would go hungry that day. So I would push it deep into my pocket and off it went. But one particular day as my mother was to hand me my quarter I instead experienced a heavy thud hit my hand followed by the words, "Donnie that is a Walking Liberty 50-cent piece and it is equal to two quarters so make sure the lady at school gives you back a quarter in change". I stood there mesmerized by that silver monstrosity in all its glory. I remember taking it back out of my pocket and holding it in my hands as I walked to school admiring all of its details and beauty. The coin seem alive as LIberty herself appeared walking to greet the rising sun. It was huge...it was beautiful... and it was more than just a coin--it was a piece of art!
During my morning classes and recess I would occasionally retrieve Lady Liberty from my pocket and sneak a peak at her. As lunchtime neared I was hit by the realization that in no way could I surrender her to the cashier--no way! So I went hungry that school day and instead of joining my friends in the cafeteria I opted to play tetherball by myself at the playground. The remainder of the school day was slow as everything slows down when your hungry. But the final bell came and with it came another problem as realized I didn't have the quarter my mother was expecting. With this in mind I sprinted to our local liquor store and scurried about the open fields that bordered it in search of the beloved 3 cent coke bottle--the bread & butter of my childhood. With my adrenaline pushing me perhaps 30 minutes passed and enough were had--I had my quarter.
As expected I ate a big dinner that evening and that night I held Lady Liberty in my hand and admired her until I feel asleep. I had mixed sentiments in that I was happy that the coin was mine and that I earned it by going hungry and collecting bottles. But I also knew that what I did was wrong and that my mother worked hard every day to give my that quarter. But as the days passed so did my guilt--its like that when you're a kid. My mother is gone now but I still have that Walking Liberty and I would not trade it for a $20 gold piece. I am sincere when I say this because every time I take a look at that wonderful coin it brings back all the memories of my childhood and all that my parents did for me. No $20 gold piece can do that for me.
That special day back in 1966 is a day I'll never forget as it was the first time I ever laid eyes on a Walking Liberty half-dollar--and it was the first day that I became a coin collector!
Every school morning my mother would give me a quarter for my hot lunch and she would tell me not to loose it or I would go hungry that day. So I would push it deep into my pocket and off it went. But one particular day as my mother was to hand me my quarter I instead experienced a heavy thud hit my hand followed by the words, "Donnie that is a Walking Liberty 50-cent piece and it is equal to two quarters so make sure the lady at school gives you back a quarter in change". I stood there mesmerized by that silver monstrosity in all its glory. I remember taking it back out of my pocket and holding it in my hands as I walked to school admiring all of its details and beauty. The coin seem alive as LIberty herself appeared walking to greet the rising sun. It was huge...it was beautiful... and it was more than just a coin--it was a piece of art!
During my morning classes and recess I would occasionally retrieve Lady Liberty from my pocket and sneak a peak at her. As lunchtime neared I was hit by the realization that in no way could I surrender her to the cashier--no way! So I went hungry that school day and instead of joining my friends in the cafeteria I opted to play tetherball by myself at the playground. The remainder of the school day was slow as everything slows down when your hungry. But the final bell came and with it came another problem as realized I didn't have the quarter my mother was expecting. With this in mind I sprinted to our local liquor store and scurried about the open fields that bordered it in search of the beloved 3 cent coke bottle--the bread & butter of my childhood. With my adrenaline pushing me perhaps 30 minutes passed and enough were had--I had my quarter.
As expected I ate a big dinner that evening and that night I held Lady Liberty in my hand and admired her until I feel asleep. I had mixed sentiments in that I was happy that the coin was mine and that I earned it by going hungry and collecting bottles. But I also knew that what I did was wrong and that my mother worked hard every day to give my that quarter. But as the days passed so did my guilt--its like that when you're a kid. My mother is gone now but I still have that Walking Liberty and I would not trade it for a $20 gold piece. I am sincere when I say this because every time I take a look at that wonderful coin it brings back all the memories of my childhood and all that my parents did for me. No $20 gold piece can do that for me.
That special day back in 1966 is a day I'll never forget as it was the first time I ever laid eyes on a Walking Liberty half-dollar--and it was the first day that I became a coin collector!
Old