A little story time…

Every October 1, I usually visit my cousin’s grave and leave two pennies. October is a difficult month for our family. In 1988, my two cousins and their friend died after their vehicle ended up in a pond in Holmen, Wisconsin. I’m not going to discuss the circumstances, but I do want to share this memory of my cousin Arne.

The night before the accident, Arne came over and asked if I wanted to go with him to a Halloween party at a classmate’s house. I said no—I was going to watch a movie with a friend. We went back and forth about it, and Arne was being his goofy self, jumping on my bed. As he left my room, he tossed two pennies at me and joked, “That’s my last two cents. Are you sure you don’t want to come hang out with us?”

I picked up those pennies, and I still have them.

When they got their headstone, I decided I would leave two pennies there every year in memory of that moment. For a long time, no one knew who was leaving them. Now you know.

Standing by the gravesite brings all those memories back as if it were yesterday. They are deeply missed, and they will never be forgotten!