The night Dave proposed (waaayy back in 2005) I was the happiest girl in the world. I had a new fiance and shiny, new diamond ring. The only problem? It was too big. So like your typical bride to be, I brought my shiny new ring to the jewelers. When I received the call that my ring was ready, I practically ran back to the store. But when I got there, I was shocked to find that my ring hardly looked like the ring my fiance had given me just a week before. The craftsmanship was sloppy. There were air bubbles and gaps and the band on either side of the diamond was uneven. I never said anything, took the ring and went home.
Ever since that moment, every time that I looked at my ring, all I saw were imperfections left behind from that horrible jeweler. I never felt that I could ever change what happened and there really was no room in our budget to get an "upgrade" ring. But every year, I secretly hoped that Dave would pick up on my "I'm not happy with my ring" vibe and surprise me with a new one.
This Christmas he offered me a present. Actually it was a Merry Christmas, Happy Birthday and Happy Anniversary present for the next, oh, I don't know, fifty years, present. A new setting! I was shocked, it's been over five years since he purchased my engagement ring. Surely that's to soon to even think about a new ring, but off to the jewelers we went.
Well, needless to say the price of gold has gone WAY up since the last time Dave went jewelry shopping. We went into one store and I just couldn't bear the thought of spending that kind of money on a new setting, when I had "perfectly" good ring on my finger. I left the store feeling discouraged and building up the "I don't need a new ring, this one is perfect just the way it is" thoughts in my mind to avoid disappointment. And then, at the last minute, we decided to check one last store.
Unlike the previous store, we were greeted immediately with a warm smile and hello from the sales woman. *Good job sales lady, good job* I was smitten and began to look at several rings. I told her that I didn't really like the idea of getting a new ring, that I liked my ring, I had sentimental attachment to my ring, but that the craftsmanship was just, well, horrible.
As Dave and I prepared for the sticker shock of what a new setting might cost, she grabbed my hand and began to examine the ring. "Oh, you don't need a new setting, you just need this setting to be tweaked every so slightly. We'll come in here, remove this here, shave a little off here, and just like that you'll have a new ring. Well, except it will be your original ring."
I nearly LEAPED across the counter, I was so excited! You mean to tell me that I get to keep my original ring AND fix all the problems created by the original jeweler all for less than a $1000 dollars! Oh lady, you've just made my year!
So with that we gave her my ring and went home. We had no idea how much this would cost us. We knew that it would be less than the cost of a new setting but surely it would be hefty investment. We were never given a price quote and immediately our minds when hay wire on thoughts of price.
This week, we received a call that the ring was ready. In the snow storm I made Dave drive us to the jeweler. There was NO way that I was waiting to get this ring back! When she pulled it out of the bag, I wanted to cry, right then and there. I held it together and instead quietly examined my ring. My beautiful, beautiful ring. My ring that my husband had given me all those years ago, except this time, perfected by a quality jeweler. I didn't ask Dave how much we owed, I let him take care of that, as I continued to examine my ring all the way home.
At some point I asked him, "So, by the way, how much did this break the bank?" "You really want to know," he asked. Ah yes I did! "$35 buckaroos". Did I just hear him correctly? All these years of going back and forth cost us only $35!!!! Seriously, this may have been the best $35 we have ever spent!
Now, thanks to $35, I look at my ring, my beautiful, beautiful ring, and smile. It's subtle difference, but it makes all the difference to me.
