The++Lucky+Penny+By+India

THE LUCKY PENNY

Come, sit and I'll tell ya 'bout my lucky penny. The one left over from paying back the potato man for that big old pumpkin we got Rosie. "Tell us, tell us" the kids yelled, so Grandpa began.

Well, it had been almost a month since we paid back the potato man for our pumpkin and I had been keeping that penny in my pocket for a while. Nobody had found out that I had it. It was kind of my own secret. Otto would call me crazy if i told him about my lucky penny and how it was one of the things I valued most. I loved that penny and at that point Otto didn't even know.

We were walking down Diploma street when Otto said, "Hey, you hungry? I am. Let's catch the potato man and get a snack." We were just about to get two oranges when we were short on a penny. "Hey, whatcha got?" He reached in my left pocket, the one holding my lucky penny and grabbed it.

I was saying, "Hey, I am saving that," but it was too late. The potato man was gone. Gone. Gone with MY penny. My //lucky// penny.

I ate my orange but I was still glum. I did not like the thought of my penny being gone. Otto finally noticed and said something to me. "Hey, what's up? You don't look happy at all." "Nothing's up, Otto." I said. "Oh, it was that penny I took from you. Sorry, I didn't know you were saving it up." Otto said to me. "I guess I should of told ya. It was my lucky penny." I said kind of shyly. "Lucky penny, I have never heard of a penny being lucky but, OK." Otto said to me and it really surprised me. "You mean you aren't going to make fun of me for having a lucky penny. ?" I asked Otto.

Otto and I kind of forgot about it for a while but when I woke up in the morning I remembered. I waited and waited and waited until I heard "Abba-no-potato-man." I ran downstairs and to the street and found the potato man. "Mr. Angelo," I started "Last time I saw you, we got those oranges, well, Otto didn't know that it was my lucky penny that he took from me and so I kind of need it back if you still ..." "You mean this penny?" said Mr. Angelo. In his right hand he was holding an empty brass case except for one old rusty penny. MY old rusty penny.

I went home and I went upstairs to my room and opened a little brown drawer and pulled out a little brown box. I opened the box and stuck the penny in it. That box held all of my special things. I never took anything out of that box.

'Cept...I remember once when Rosie found that box.

"Tell us, Grandpa, tell us." "I want to hear that story."

"No, that's another story for another day."