A Japanese kid with the Twitter handle ‘Tomo’ took on the tedious task of restoring a 10,000 yen bill after it had been accidentally torn into thousands of pieces, showing utmost determination.
The boy’s father had accidentally destroyed an old envelope that held the bill, so it ended up in a paper shredder. Seeing an opportunity to impart an important life lesson, the father gave his son the difficult assignment and offered the repaired bill as a reward.
Tomo was not intimidated by the task’s difficulty and started separating the last shredded banknote from the trash. The bill’s lighter tone in some areas made Tomo’s duty more difficult, making it difficult to identify.
Tomo devised a clever strategy to increase his chances of winning. He used a transparent sheet as a reference for a further 10,000 yen bill. Using this technique, he compared and stacked the torn pieces on top of the whole banknote, piece by piece, solving the puzzle. Even with his technique, it required more than three weeks of persistent dedication.
Tomo tweeted a picture of his partially restored bill on March 21st, expressing faith that it would be fixed despite its imperfections. Even with knowledge of the Bank of Japan’s strict guidelines about damaged currency exchange, Tomo continued to have hope that he would fulfil the requirements for reimbursement. Tomo wanted to meet the bank’s requirements, which stated that a banknote is eligible for total value exchange if more than two-thirds of it is still intact.
Tomo went to the Bank of Japan with his repaired bill and had it examined in detail, waiting impatiently to hear what came out of his efforts. He just announced the successful swap on Twitter and was rewarded with a brand-new 10,000 yen bill for his perseverance. The boy thanked the institution for their understanding and shared how his story is an encouraging example of determination and willpower in the face of hardship.
