How many pennies could you collect in a month? A year? One Louisiana teacher, Otha Anders, kept at it for 45 years, and eventually wheeled 15 five-gallon water jugs into his local bank.

Anders started picking up pennies in the late 1960s, not to get rich, but because he liked the habit. He even ignored a government program that paid $125 for every $100 in pennies. The coins mattered to him for a different reason.

Over time, each penny became a reminder to pause and say a short prayer. If he spotted one at a gas station or on a sidewalk, he’d stop, give thanks, and pocket it. He never took pennies as gifts, not from friends, not even from family, because he wanted the satisfaction of building the collection himself.

The jars multiplied. Five jugs became ten, then fifteen. When his homeowner’s insurance wouldn’t cover the stash, Anders finally called Origin Bank in Ruston, Louisiana, where he’d been a longtime customer. Staff cracked the heavy jugs open with an ax and spent over five hours counting.

By the end, the lifetime of loose change added up to thousands of dollars, but for Anders, the real value was in the daily practice: gratitude, one penny at a time.