Another unforgettable incident of last week was the loss of Pedro's wedding ring in the hot springs of the cocha in Pica.
We were both truly saddened at its loss. After twelve years of marriage its monetary value was not great, but its sentimental value certainly was. It was ordered and crafted through a friend in New York City who in the summer of 1997 prepared wedding and engagement rings for my sister and her husband; Pedro's brother and his wife; and Pedro and me.
The picture below is the best I've found of the ring (we didn't take the traditional ring picture on our wedding day, though now I wish we had!) The ring was made of white gold, fairly thick and wide, definitely a man's ring. Two narrow lines were indented just within the edges of the ring, giving it an interesting form and dimension.
We replaced the ring this week with a nice but inexpensive silver version. It, too, is wide and masculine but the the main difference is a dark tracing of ocean waves through the middle of the ring. We chose it because of its similarity in shape and weight to the original, and because the waves will always remind us that this ring began its story here in Iquique.
Tonight I shared this with Melody, our missionary friend and mentor who loves Northern Chile and invested years of her life here alongside her first husband Bill Dooley. Melody is the type of person who almost always sees the glass as half-full rather than half-empty, and tonight was no exception. Her reaction to the loss of Pedro's ring was this:
We were both truly saddened at its loss. After twelve years of marriage its monetary value was not great, but its sentimental value certainly was. It was ordered and crafted through a friend in New York City who in the summer of 1997 prepared wedding and engagement rings for my sister and her husband; Pedro's brother and his wife; and Pedro and me.
The picture below is the best I've found of the ring (we didn't take the traditional ring picture on our wedding day, though now I wish we had!) The ring was made of white gold, fairly thick and wide, definitely a man's ring. Two narrow lines were indented just within the edges of the ring, giving it an interesting form and dimension.
We replaced the ring this week with a nice but inexpensive silver version. It, too, is wide and masculine but the the main difference is a dark tracing of ocean waves through the middle of the ring. We chose it because of its similarity in shape and weight to the original, and because the waves will always remind us that this ring began its story here in Iquique.
Tonight I shared this with Melody, our missionary friend and mentor who loves Northern Chile and invested years of her life here alongside her first husband Bill Dooley. Melody is the type of person who almost always sees the glass as half-full rather than half-empty, and tonight was no exception. Her reaction to the loss of Pedro's ring was this:
That means your hearts are buried deep in the Atacama...that's BEAUTIFULWhat a lovely way to think of this loss, indeed.
1 comment:
Oh Step - that's no fun! Matthew lost his wedding band 3 days after we were married....we were swimming in some falls so our love is also buried underwater=)
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