A Van Gogh in my pocket
metal echoes in empty pockets
sailing the sea, climbing the sky
pressed on silver.
What can a coin tell us?
Today I pulled two quarters from my pocket and paused like a kid who’s just been handed a candy. One, dated 2001, shows a sailboat crossing the ocean with umbrellas on the shore — Rhode Island’s coastline, engraved in miniature. The other, from 2023, honors Bessie Coleman: the aviator’s cap, her determined face, a plane climbing into a cloudy sky.
It struck me how much thought goes into these tiny objects. We live inside an ever-growing virtuality; cluttered screens, notifications badges. Yet here, between my fingers, was a crafted scene so deliberate it felt like seeing a Van Gogh for the first time.
Coins are ordinary, but they carry histories and stories — proof that the tactile world still holds wonders, if we take the time to slow down.
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