Quiet Dreams: Value and Worth

What do you value and do you assign it worth? I worked in a local jewelry store for six years. There were three chain stores that competed with us, but, under one name or another, mine had been a family operated business for about a hundred years or more. After this was all over with, I had little respect for many of the competitions employees. Some of them I still hold considerable respect for, but not so much for certain others. I’m the sort of fool who believes in earnest and honest competition. Some would stoop to anything to make a sale. It’s one reason I was a terrible salesman. Fortunately, the manager is a sweet woman and I did many odd jobs. However, I also had a quandary over what was valued versus its worth.

Outside of the finest quality diamonds, I’m not a fan of the stone. It has an inflated value and a false sense of virtue. I could go into the ethics of the diamond industry, but that isn’t pleasant. This is also not a dig against retailers. They must follow the zeitgeist of the market. Personally, most diamonds are lacking in my mind. The store I worked at prided itself on the quality of merchandise sold, and, truthfully, it lives up to that reputation. I have seen incredible pieces of craftsmanship come through there, as well as a stunning business acumen where fashion is concerned. When it comes to stones, though, my love is in the variety. Diamonds are generally viewed with a greater value, but for me there are more worthy stones simply due to the incredible variety.

Sapphires are my basic go-to stone. I love blue, this is true, but they can actually be found in a tremendous array of colors. The only color they are not is red; both stones are from the same family of gemstones, but rubies are their own stone. I love that they are available in so many shades. The quality of the stone makes for a dazzling adornment.

Alexandrite is an unusual stone. It is an uncommon stone in terms of rarity, but what truly sets it apart is that it’s color changes based on the lightsource it is in. It has a more greenish hue under daylight conditions, but under, for example, some artificial light sources, it has more of a pinkish or red tint. I love this quality in the stone. The change in color is reminiscent of the change from day to night, a shift in the nature of your surroundings. In spite of this, for as much as I love alexandrite and carborundum (the family that sapphires an rubies belong to), they are still not my favorite.

Have you ever heard of tanzanite? I would guess not. The poor dear does not get enough press and they are scarce. This doesn’t necessitate that they are outrageously expensive, although it is a possibility. They range from blue to violet and I love the shades which I have seen. I can’t explain to you accurately why I adore this stone so much, but it is the reality. I do love shades of purple, though, a color I feel I cannot pull off. The rarity does appeal to me for the simple fact that I love what is uncommon. Google the stone as well as the others. The variety of colors are riotous. Diamonds seem so static in the face of the brilliance of these stones.

I wish I had waxed more poetically, but my brain has been fairly uncooperative the last few days. I might return to this later and jazz it up a bit in a different post. I like to share thoughts, but there is also the desire to give you something more compelling to read.

Thanks for stopping by, friends. Take care of you and I’ll see you next time.