Native Spirits & Spirit Pennies of Skamania Coves

This story picks up in 2012, maybe it was 2013. The houses had been built and we were in the process of renovating the Overlook.

Scott, my husband, had been reading the journals of Lewis and Clark. There is a section within their writing where they discuss a spot along the Columbia River that could very well be our property. The map they drew resembles the curve in the river where we are now. Also, we Pacific Northwesterners are aware of the kindness and help the Native people offered these pioneers which led to the success in their quest.

With this in mind, Scott suggested that we do something to cleanse the land and honor the Native spirits. I agreed.

I agreed because around this time, a strange phenomenon had been taking place. Pennies. Pennies were being found all over the property—pennies—not quarters or dimes or nickels— pennies.

One day, our manager Kristin’s husband, Brad, drove the riding lawn mower up to me. He had been mowing the RV park and was headed up to the Bluff and Condos to mow their lawns.

He held out his hand and asked me, “Look at this. Do you ever find pennies on the property? I just found these three in the RV grass. It’s strange, I find pennies in the weirdest of places.”

I didn’t know what to say at first. I too have found pennies in the strangest places—on the floor in the workroom, in a random nightstand drawer, in a basket shoved in the back of our supply closet. Once I even found a penny on the seat of my car, I promise it wasn’t there before. Pennies have been found on the deck of a house and in its driveway but none in the same spot I originally hid them.

I decided to tell Brad the story about how years earlier, my friend and I shared pennies with the Native spirits at each house.

“I think they’ve turned it into a game with us,” I suggested.

“Well, that’s sort of spooky,” he said, obviously not sure if he should believe me or not. “What should I do with them?”

“It’s a gift,” I said encouragingly.

When I started finding pennies and chose to believe it was a game played with the Natives of the land, I created three rules…. “You have three options,” I told him. “You can keep them as the gift they are meant to be. Say thank you. Put them in your back pocket and know they have your back. Or you can leave the penny where you found it, for someone else to find. Or you can hide them wherever you want, this keeps the game going.”

“Yeah…. okay,” he said. “I guess I’ll keep the game going….”

STORY CONTINUES >>>>> CHAPTER THREE: THE RIVERHOUSE