College of Engineering News |
An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but for one Cal Poly professor, a penny a day inspires many to pray.
While most of us ignore the change lying on the floor, engineer professor Tina Shelton does not ignore the shiny coppers circle on the sidewalk.
It all started when Shelton and her husband, who is also a professor in the engineering department, was unable to get city’s approval for their dream home plans.
Shelton felt she needed a sign from God to proceed with the project. The helpers assigned to the project are what she refers to as the “Penny Angels.”
The sign was the penny on the ground next to her foot, which pushed her to finish the project. Her quest began with this first penny she picked up.
“It’s more than a penny. It’s a trigger, a symbol,” said Shelton.
However, it did not end there. Whenever Shelton needed motivation or felt like quitting the house project, a penny would appear.
“OK. From now on – in God we trust. God, if you want us to build this house, then you need to be the contractor on this,” writes Shelton on her Web site.
She has since nicknamed her dream house project “Tina’s Ark.”
“I need penny reassurances to know this is the right thing to do,” she said.
Since then, Shelton has continued to be reassured, as she has found a penny or more every day.
Today is her 340th day of “penny fever.”
As an engineer, Shelton does not define the penny findings as logical. However, she said this has definitely given her and her friends a lot of support.
Shelton started documenting and sharing her stories with her friends, who have also become inspired by the “Penny Angels.”
She has created Pennyfinders.com, which is not only a place for Shelton to share her experiences and the many lessons she has learned from her penny-finding adventures, but also allows followers to post their own testimonials as well.
One experience Shelton shares on her site exemplifies the motivational finding experience.
Before leaving California for her 11-day vacation to Mexico, Shelton found 11 pennies at LAX, one for each day of her trip. In addition, she continued to find American pennies each day while she was on vacation.
She calls her finding-stories “Penny Tales” and is now considering writing a book, about her experience.
The process of finding a penny, according to Shelton, is more complicated then it may seem.
She explains that the task requires focus on the goal, energy for each day and solutions to be present in the moment.
Sometime the answer that one may be looking for may be lying around unnoticed, just like pennies are every day, she said.
In the process, one needs to, “Release all worries about how you will achieve things and be receptive for the answers to present themselves,” Shelton advises on her Web Site.
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llustration by Marcie Heacox/Poly Post |
Chuck Zhang
The Post Post
November 23, 2009
