I love my wedding ring and wedding band.
When we started dating, I asked Rick to never buy me any jewelry unless I specifically asked for a particular piece.
Early into our marriage, I expressed a desire to some day have an emerald and diamond ring.
10 years ago, as a Seminary graduation gift to me and a gift to celebrate the upcoming birth of our second child, Lauren, he designed an emerald and diamond ring that he gave to me.
I loved it and have been wearing it for 10 years.
2 years ago as we worked on the adoption process for Isaiah and Laila, I found a necklace that I wanted on Etsy made by Junkposse. Click here to see it. Rick got it for me for Christmas '08.
I wore it every day leading up to bringing Isaiah and Laila home. It connected me to them. My intention was to give it to Laila when she gets older. It had the word "hope" stamped all over it. Her middle name is Nomathemba, which means "hope."
I wore that necklace every day Rick was in Swaziland in February. It connected me to him and what he was doing.
One day, while he was gone, I lost it. I was heartbroken. It wasn't just a necklace. It represented the calling that we followed in adopting Isaiah and Laila. It represented all the pain of the process. It represented the hope that these children have brought to our lives. It was something I wanted to give to Laila some day.
Well, today it happened again. I looked down when I was driving the kids home from school and the emerald was missing from my ring. I couldn't believe it. I just told Rick a few days ago that I was concerned about the diamond in my wedding ring coming loose. Little did I know that only a few days later that would happen to my emerald ring.
Really, it is just a piece of jewelry, a material thing, but its significance to me is so much more. I don't know what God wants to teach me. Maybe He wants me to hold loosely to the things of this world. Maybe He wants me to place all value on Him and the relationships He has placed in my life. Really, what is a ring? It is a piece of metal with "rocks" attached.
Still, I feel a little sadness every time I take my thumb on my right hand and go to adjust that ring that has been on my finger for 10 years, the ring that is no longer there.
Almost 6 years ago, I lost a charm bracelet given to me by a group of friends when we left Texas. Honestly? I know it was just a "thing" but I still get such a pang when I think of all it represented. I read your FB post and felt so sad. My lost bracelet reminds me to store up treasure in heaven where it can't get lost--like the relationships that bracelet represented. So sorry, Laura.
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