I have a diamond. Just one. It sits alone on top of the gold of my engagement ring.
The other day, I turned my diamond, this way and that, in a stream of sunlight, watching it sparkle. Then I said, “Imogen, have I ever told you the story of my engagement ring?”
“Dad and I got engaged at the end of high school before we went to uni,” I said, starting the tale. “But before we could get engaged, we needed a ring.”
My love and I roamed the shopping centre, visiting all the jewellers, searching for the perfect ring. When we told the shop assistants our ring-buying budget, they raised their eyebrows, pulled out a couple of ring-filled velvet-lined trays, placing them on the counter in front of us.
“I tried a few rings on, and I was so disappointed,” I told Imogen. “Each ring’s diamond was no more than a speck in its setting. I didn’t want an extravagant ring, but I did want to see the diamond. An engagement ring has to last a lifetime. It’s not the sort of thing that you upgrade when you have more money.”
Andy and I felt very discouraged. Perhaps we’d have to wait until our ring-buying budget grew. Postpone our engagement. Then one day, when we were wandering through the shopping centre, we saw a jewellery shop we hadn’t visited before. We peered through the window and there was my ring. It was very simple. Just one diamond. One sparkly diamond that I didn’t have to screw up my eyes to see. It must have been waiting for me.
”I remember looking at my ring while sitting on a tiny train station platform halfway across Wales,” I said to Imogen. “ I was on my way back to uni. While I was waiting for my connecting train, I rotated the diamond in the sunshine and enjoyed all the colours that leapt from its centre.”
It’s funny how we can remember seemingly unimportant moments of our lives.
I stopped my story. I’d noticed the cats splattered on the carpet in front of us, soaking up the early winter sunshine. I pulled myself off the sofa and joined the cats in their warm patch and held out my hand. I rotated my diamond. And the light bent. It refracted into a spectrum of rainbow colours.
And I thought:
The same hand.
The same ring.
The same colours.
Just a different time and place.
A lot has changed since I was that twenty-year-old university student sitting on a sunny train station platform halfway across Wales. At that time, I was hoping to have a spectacular future. When I graduated, I was going to marry my love. I imagined the usual things that I thought would bring me happiness: a home of our own, a few children. But I didn’t see further than that.
I had no idea that I’d love God who has always loved me.
My diamond continues to sparkle.
The same ring.
The same hand.
But I’m a different person.
Good to see you back! Beautiful read today. Thank you!
Staci,
I’m glad I had some quiet time this morning to finish this story that I started a few weeks ago. Thank you for reading it and for the welcome back!
I like reading about your memories so much! It is a beautiful story. It is so special, that you really cared about your ring and wanted it to be beautiful and precious for the lifetime.
I did not care much about “material things” when I got engaged, but now I wish I did. My ring was lovely and beautiful to me, but not very durable and got broken (the little red stone fell of soon and after all our moves I am not even sure that I have in anymore). It is only “material thing”, but at the same time engagement ring is so much more, and yes, it is very beautiful when it can stay beautiful for many years. Gratefully, my wedding ring is very simple, but also durable and still looks beautiful.
This anonymous comment was from Luana.
Luana,
It is always such a pleasure receiving your comments. Thank you for reading my stories!
I’m sorry your engagement ring is broken. That’s very sad. Yes, rings are only material things, but they are signs of our love and so they’re very special.
I have a wedding story that I want to write. I been thinking it about it all weekend, but unfortunately, I didn’t find time to write it. A few days ago, Andy and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. Our June wedding anniversary. We also have an April wedding anniversary. I wonder if you’ve heard the story of our two weddings.
Luana, I hope all is well with you and your family. You are in my prayers. xxx
Happy anniversary!
Oh, how I would love to read that wedding story! I hope you will write it.
And also, could you please leave a link to your wedding story (April/June) that you already wrote?
Thank you for prayers! We hope to be able to visit our parents in the next weeks. It feels scarry, because of corona, but at the same time we really miss them and hope we will be able to finally see each other.
I don`t remember about your and Andy`s parents – do they still live? If so, how do you keep contact?
I know you wrote that after Thomas death it was the last time, that Andys mum has visited. It is such a precious story about last talk that you and his mum had, before she left.
Luana,
Thank you for your anniversary greetings!
My old wedding stories are no longer online, but I’m halfway through writing a new one. I shall share it when it’s finished. Thank you so much for your interest!
Were you able to visit your parents? I hope so!
Andy’s parents are no longer alive. Andy’s dad died many years ago, just after we were married. We were married on his birthday! You are right: Andy’s mother visited us for the last time when Thomas was born. She died about twelve years ago.
My parents live about 45 minutes’ drive away. I have seen them a couple of times since the pandemic began. At the weekend, we visited my sister for the first time in months. That was so exciting. We had a great day together, catching up with our news.
I hope all is well with you and your family. May God bless you!
I`m patiently waiting for your wedding story 😉
I also hope that you were able to save your old blog posts. They are such a treasure, hopefully all of that did not get lost.
So glad to hear, that you could visit your parents and sister. I remember Vicky from your comments on the old blog. I hope she is doing well and still painting.
We had lovely family visit and have enjoyed our time together. May God bless you and your family all around Australia, too!
Luana,
Thanks to you, I finished my wedding story! I just posted it.
I still have all my old stories. Perhaps I’ll rewrite some of them. But even if I don’t, I’ll keep them as memories of our family life. Thank you so much for calling them treasures.
My sister Vicky is still painting. She’ll be thrilled to hear you remember her!
May God bless you and your family too!