DARK COIN

"On a clear sky day, there was a Ratchaphruek tree that resembled my old name before I changed it. I felt a spiritual connection to this tree. As it grew and expanded, its branches were repeatedly cut, mirroring the ups and downs of my life. Its age matched mine, and it existed before me. However, when my father passed away, the tree was also cut down. Since then, my intuition hasn't been the same, starting from the age of 24.

Now, let's rewind to the story of the black coin about 19 years ago. I can't remember it vividly due to my young age at the time, but I recall seeing some peculiar coins and swallowing one without much thought.

During those years, around 2002 , black coins were abundant for kids to collect. It's unclear whether people back then didn't care about money, or the coins simply fell off. The origin of these coins remains a mystery. I used to collect them for school, rubbing them against the ground to make them look more like real coins. Some were too black to clean, and some stores wouldn't accept them due to their age or suspicion. One day, I collected a bunch of very old coins from a pile of soil that had been dug up by a bulldozer in our yard. It was filled with bones from the dog's master in the house, who often dug and scattered them.

During that time, my parents would buy soil from a contractor to raise the ground level. Of course, we had no idea where the soil came from. The contractor might have bought cheap land, and no one wanted it for some reason. They brought the soil to our house, and strange things started happening. The smell of the soil was similar to the smell of decay or compost. Strange and old coins appeared. Our dogs loved to dig in that soil, and sometimes they unearthed peculiar bones.

While playing with the dog"name joa jomm" in the pile of black clay soil, the smell was strong, like rot or a compost-like aroma. joa jomm dug a large hole, as if trying to find something with a peculiar scent, but I didn't take anything that day.

As the day dawned, joa jomm found a large bone for his dog to chew on. It was huge, almost like a human bone, so my mother had to throw it away because it looked terrifying. joa jomm disappeared that day."

"In the morning, as the sun rose, the earthy scent began to fade in the strong morning sunlight. I didn't want to imagine how intense the smell would be if it rained. joa jomm returned, looking much more emaciated. I wasn't sure what it encountered, but it slept all day and didn't play with me. I decided to explore the pile of soil. While I was looking for old things like rocks and twigs, typical of a 4-5 year old, I found some peculiar and very old coins. They were so black that I couldn't tell if they were Thai Baht or something else. They seemed thinner than regular coins. I kept them, trying to clean them with dirt or scouring pads, but nothing worked.

I kept them at home, near the TV, where we collected coins. The collection also included many temple coins. Around six in the evening, near sunset, my mother and older brother would be at home. As my brother occupied the TV, my mother prepared dinner. I walked towards the board with the alphabet that my mother had put up, opposite the TV. My brother and I turned away from each other, facing the board. There, directly opposite the coins I collected, I began to spell out words letter by letter.

"G-E-R-N-G."

The sound, like a ringing bell, was about to reveal that everything was beginning.

...The sound of the coin falling from above, yet nothing passed through from above. It was as if someone had held it and placed it directly in front, making a sound to draw my attention. It was the coin I had collected. No one had picked it up and placed it on the floor for sure. In just 2-3 seconds, the atmosphere changed, becoming oppressive and heavy. A feeling of being pressed, as if someone was forcing us to do something, like being squeezed. It felt like many eyes were watching through the door. Then they entered, slowly coming closer as my hands were about to pick up the coin.

There was only one way to escape, to go after the coin. After picking it up, they came closer as if they were dark shadows, invisible. It was like a shadow that constantly watched and pressed us to do something. I felt the presence of several people looking through the door. Then they entered and got closer because my hands were about to pick up the coin.

The only way to escape was to go after the coin. After picking it up, they approached as if they were dark shadows, invisible. It was like a shadow that constantly watched and pressed us to do something. I felt the presence of several people looking through the door. Then they entered and got closer because my hands were about to pick up the coin.

The only way to escape was to go after the coin. After picking it up, they approached as if they were dark shadows, invisible. It was like a shadow that constantly watched and pressed us to do something. I felt the presence of several people looking through the door. Then they entered and got closer because my hands were about to pick up the coin.

The only way to escape was to go after the coin. After picking it up, they approached as if they were dark shadows, invisible. It was like a shadow that constantly watched and pressed us to do something. I felt the presence of several people looking through the door. Then they entered and got closer because my hands were about to pick up the coin.

The only way to escape was to go after the coin. After picking it up, they approached as if they were dark shadows, invisible. It was like a shadow that constantly watched and pressed us to do something. I felt the presence of several people looking through the door. Then they entered and got closer because my hands were about to pick up the coin.

"Heeh heeeh," they were smiling.

The atmosphere began to change. It got colder, causing shivers and a sense of pressure in the chest, but at the same time, a feeling of goosebumps replaced it.

It didn't get any better; in fact, it became worse than the initial feeling. I couldn't bear the sudden and overwhelming sensation and vomited after picking up the coin.

Along with the shadowy black hand grabbing mine and the dark shadows from the anonymous hand, it gradually darkened my vision. It consumed me without any chance of resistance... and I couldn't remember anything after that.

"Poom!"

When I woke up, my mother was shaking me. Everyone, my mother and older brother, looked scared and relieved at the same time.

My mother explained that my brother saw me swallowing the coin and not breathing. Luckily, my brother quickly told my mother, and she shook the coin out of my mouth. It was a small coin that rolled away, and no one noticed where it disappeared. All eyes were on me, wondering if I would survive after choking on the coin.

It's strange that I didn't know anything at all. I had almost no memory of that time, but I felt the lingering trauma of being choked by the coin. It was as if it wanted me to perceive what it felt or maybe wanted to kill me. However, my brother explained that I was calm and swallowed the coin slowly. It was odd, right? Moreover, the coin I swallowed disappeared again. Since then, I never collected any strange coins.

One morning, I overheard my mother whispering to a relative that the contractor who brought the soil was retrieving it at a low price near a temple. Of course, there were many old coins of the deceased and human bones in that soil. I got scolded by my mother again for swallowing the coin. I became a stubborn child. I told them it wasn't like that at all.

I went back to look at the coins I had collected. The 1 Baht coin vanished from that area and the one where I kept the coins. Right at the spot where the Buddha was. It disappeared just like that.

I remember throwing all those coins away and never collecting them again.

I almost died. Did they want to keep me in the spirit world, or did they want me to feel what they felt? But it could have killed me, for sure."

So, taking care of children during their early years is crucial to prevent them from putting things in their mouths or swallowing anything dangerous. There have been cases of children in Thailand dying due to such incidents, often resulting from neglect or other factors.