In this short post, I am going to tell you a true story that recently happened to me over spring break and how it got me thinking afterwards about how it connects to genealogy.
How many of my readers wear rings that have diamonds or other precious stones in their settings? I am not the type of person that wears a lot of jewelry. Usually, I will wear everyday earrings and my wedding rings. So, you can say I am simple when it comes to jewelry.
But while today a ring might be your jewelry, in twenty years, it could be your family’s heirlooms. The rings and necklaces tucked about the jewelry box now may become memories passed down for generations.
Here is the story of how I nearly lost part of my wedding ring forever, and the lessons I learned from it.
Spring Break: Lost Diamond
On spring break, we took our grandson to visit his great-uncle or fondly known as ‘Gruncle’. Everything went fine with airport security and our flight and there were no problems until we were at Gruncle’s house eating dinner. I am not sure what made me look at my ring, but that is when I noticed the diamond missing from my engagement ring.
My engagement ring is very simple, a gold band with one diamond in a 5-prong setting. This setting was changed about 25 years ago because one of the prongs broke on the previous one. If I changed the setting though, how did it fall out?
Since the change of the setting, I have not had my diamond ring professionally cleaned and checked. My thinking was that now it was in a 5-prong setting it was safe from falling out. Boy was I wrong!
We immediately looked around the dining room, kitchen and bedroom floors as they were wood and tile, but we did not find the diamond. Of course, my husband and I was upset, but we were both very calm about it. This was commented later on by Gruncle.
How and Where Did I Lose It?
As you might have guessed, I went over the whole day in my mind while in bed. All I could come up with that was the only unusual thing I did was use the blasting hand air dryer that was at the airport. The bathrooms were recently renovated where the soap, water and hand air dryer are all connected within the sink area. Did the blast of warm air force open the ring setting?
I told the story at breakfast to Gruncle and he said I should put a lost and found claim with the airport and airlines. So, with his help we found both websites where I made my claims. I felt weird making a claim for something that you could barely see, but I was sure if someone would check the restroom near the gate, they would find my diamond sitting in the sink. We were amazed on how quickly both responded that no diamond has been turned in and that if they did, they would contact me. At least I tried.
Now For The Rest of The Story:
Would you believe we found the diamond? No, it wasn’t in the airport sink. It was in a location that you would never guess.
While I got ready for the day, Gruncle started retracing my steps for the diamond. he looked on the driveway and then he looked in the car. He found the diamond! It was in the least likely spot, in the trunk seal. What are the chances that the diamond would fall in that spot, and we would find it!
Genealogy Connection:
After losing/finding my diamond, it got me thinking about heirloom jewelry and how it connects to genealogy. Heirloom jewelry also gets passed down each generation and, as with any jewelry, there usually is a story.
From this unusual happening, I have learned with any jewelry that it needs to be taken care of. By caring for your jewelry and precious heirlooms you will then be able to pass them on.
One day, my wedding rings will be given to one of my children and then get passed down to another family member with my amazing lost/found diamond story. Genealogy is not just about dates and documents; it is about connecting it all together to make your unique family genealogical story.
If You:
- Have genealogy question/mystery, please privately email me by clicking this contact link: https://www.nancydrugenealogy.com/contact-2/
- Would like to read more articles about genealogy, please visit my homepage: https://www.nancydrugenealogy.com/.
- Would like to explore genealogy please visit FamilySearch to start your tree for free.
Happy Sleuthing,
How LUCKY were you to have found the diamond, and what joy for you Nancy, when found :D.
Yes, I was very lucky! Now that I have found my diamond it gives me a second chance to redesign how I really want my ring to look. I didn’t know back then, but now I want mine to look like my mother’s ring. Maybe it will be done for our 40th wedding anniversary in 3 years.😁