Trinidad Memories: Remember When 1 "Shiny Coins"

Do you recall as a child finding money that looked dull and dingy? I am talking about the days when the coins in Trinidad were the large penny and cent with images of the King and Queen of England. Those coins were times bigger and heavier that the coins that circulate today. I remember when fire would burn the area of the rail tracks and the surrounding areas the children would walk through the area looking for things to collect. More time that ever we would find marbles and coins - money.

So what did we do with these coins? Ah ha this is where the fun started. We would find a spot in the yard that was a little damp and place a coin on the earth. The next step was really interesting with our bare feet (heel) we would twist and turn causing the earth to grind over the coin. Interestingly the coin would become shiny clean. Why did we do this? I don't have a clue (maybe we liked looking at 'new shiny coins') but looking back I can recall that it was an activity that was fun. Why else would we have done it?

Today people walk past coins in the street and steups.  The value of money and even people's values have changed. I know back then one cent (called a penny today) got me six paradise plums. That 'sweetie' was red and orange in color and was covered in sugar. In those days the big Penny was worth two cents(we are talking about twelve paradise plums). Indeed times have changed but this does not mean that we cannot look back and recall those sweet days growing up in a period when life in Trinidad was considered 'ketch arse'but everone shared the little they had - the good ole days!

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