Do like a Necromancer (Part 2): Touch

We touch everything we love.
   This is how we have experienced the world since birth. We touch. Collectors love their coins and want to touch them too. How else can we really connect with them?
   This is the way of the necromancer.
   Our fingertips are endowed with millions of nerve endings. They represent the center of tactility. A big hunk of brain is devoted to the sense of touch. And think about this: We have put our fingers just about everywhere else, so why not coins?

Go ahead and place a few fingertip coins out in the open.
Explore them with your fingertips, and when you have
guests, hand them over. Enjoy them, and let the Angel
cry out in agony, as you unleash your curiosity!

   Well, here is the rub. Literally. Collectors have been made afraid to touch their coins. We fear that our hands will be slapped by the Angel of Numismatic Correctness! "Never touch the surface of a coin," she says like a strict teacher wielding a ruler.
   This admonition is clearly stated in just about every coin collecting guide. Even a circulated coin should not be touched ... as it will melt away from the oils and grime caked on our fingertips. Ecch!
   Yet, we forget that circulated cents, nickels, dimes were handled for decades by careless and distracted hands. Some coins have been retrieved after being lost in the dirt. Other coins have been found at the bottom of the sea.
   Still, the no-touch coaching rings in our ears.
   Of course, we will not be so neglectful as a busy cashier or a pirate. Our coins are marvelous because we have taken the time to select each one for our collection. We will touch carefully.
   The first challenge of the would-be necromancer is to overcome the fear of retribution from the Angel. We want to be able to touch our coins without intense guilt, that if turned inward, could produce stomach ulcers, or worse, kill us with an aneurysm in the brain. I can imagine the headline: Coin collector found dead on the floor after touching his Morgan Dollars!
   If you have already engaged in the two-penny shuffle (a few weeks ago), then you are moving in the right direction. If not, then it is time to seek out some fingertip-coins. I recommend something heavily worn or corroded as a starting point. If you collect coins in a series, go out and get a nice worn piece to compliment your set. Or, get a ship-coin that has been savored as a curiosity -- sailing ships look great as they emerge from the mist of wear.
   Think of this as a desensitization exercise. It is one of the first lessons of the necromancer. You do not need to smash your thumb on the coin face, but you can if you want to. Instead, just explore it without any particular plan or rule. Let your curiosity be the guide. Follow the energy.