A single dollar is worth much more than most people give it credit. It has the power to unite people. To bring them hope. To completely change their future. And, yes, it also has the power to buy a pack of chewing gum.

For Reddit user Jason W., who goes by the moniker Jfreak7, a 1 dollar bill isn’t just a dollar bill: it’s the key that opened the door to a bright, happy, and wholesome future. According to the Redditor, a dollar bill was responsible for him having a wife, 3 kids, and his entire future.

This is a story that will warm your heart on this chilly autumn day, so read on, preferably with a cup of hot cocoa in your hands, and get ready to smile. Be sure to scroll down for Bored Panda’s full exclusive interview with Jason.

The power of a single dollar bill…

…is huge, especially when it comes to wholesome and romantic stories

Image credits: Jfreak7

Jason revealed that he was in 9th grade when the greatest love story of his life started. During a band trip, the girl he liked bought him a pack of gum, but he was a gentleman and wanted to pay her back the 1 dollar. He put the dollar in her pocket; she put it in his backpack. They did this back and forth until the Redditor asked her out by writing the question on the bill.

They kept up the back-and-forth with the dollar. 4 years after all of this started, Jason wrote “Will you marry me” on the dollar. And the rest, as they say, was history. The duo has been married for 15 years now! What’s adorable is that they kept the dollar bill that started it all. Now that’s romance, folks, and there’s nothing like a story like this to make you believe in true love.

Jason spoke to Bored Panda about the wholesome story, going into more detail about what happened. “It was a way for us to flirt back and forth. This was in junior high and high school, so we had to get creative with it. Friends gave us a lot of different ideas too.”

“God, family, and teachers along the way structured my (and our) values. I didn’t go in thinking this 1 dollar bill would change our lives and I didn’t plan to keep it after asking her out. I’m really glad that I did, though. Maybe the 1 dollar bill taught us some restraint. We still haven’t spent it,” Jason said.

The couple still has the dollar bill!

Image credits: Jfreak7

According to him, the response to the story has been positive so far. “I posted the story once about 9 years ago (the Imgur link is from 2010), I think it’s in my top 20 posts. This one I’m pretty sure if my top one now. It feels pretty cool to know that people can be positive and supportive about a pretty silly story from what seems like so long ago.”

“I tried to find what made her smile and tried to always do that,” Jason said about his relationship with his wife. “I still do that to this day.”

Jason had some advice for those people who are struggling with asking out those they have a crush on: “Heartbreak and disappointment are facts of life. Some people get nervous and start to worry. Nerves suck, but are merely proof of the importance of your situation. Push through it (insert Shia LaBeouf “Just do it” motivation speech).”

“Try your best to make that feeling motivation. I still remember handing off that 1 dollar bill after writing on it. I was dying inside from nerves. Every one of my friends said she would say yes. Every one of her friends said she would say yes. But, still, I was the most nervous I would be in my life until my son was being born. I still have the 1 dollar bill, but in reality, I cashed it in when I married my wife. To me, I couldn’t have invested it in any better way.”

The value of 1 dollar has depreciated over time in the United States. While a single dollar could get you a pair of patent leather shoes back in 1907, this is far from the case now. Visual Capitalist explains that in 1913, a single dollar was enough to buy a women’s house dress, 5 pounds of sugar in 1920, 16 cans of Campbell’s soup in 1934, and 20 bottles of Coca-Cola in 1940.

In 1950, 1 dollar was enough to get a Mr. Potato Head, 2 movie tickets 10 years later, 3 TV dinners in 1970, but only a bottle of Heinz Ketchup in 1980. In 1990, a person with a dollar could buy a gallon of milk; as the new millennium rolled in, 1 dollar could buy you a hamburger at Wendy’s. Nowadays, a dollar is enough to buy a song on iTunes (maybe). Or a pack of chewing gum and a bright future.

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