Years from now you may pick up a piece of your jewelry and it will bring back a memory. Whether it is the memory of the fun you had when purchasing your new piece of jewelry or what the piece of jewelry represents to you.
A beautiful friend of mine, Martha, approached me the other day with a request, to hold a memory even closer to her heart. Her first husband, the father of her children, died several years ago. Although there were pictures, she wanted something more for herself, and her children. She wanted a personalized remembrance, that she could keep closer to her.
She asked if I could infuse some of her husband's ashes in a glass cabochon. I had not done this before but I knew it could be done. My father had passed not long before this request and I still had his ashes available to me, so I gave it a try.
The trial cabochon was a simple piece, with a small amount of ash, that resulted in a lovely remembrance of my father. I was surprised at the warmth it gives my heart each time I look at the piece.
Martha offered her words of her experience and why she wanted her remembrance.
Here is what she wrote:
"Death does not discriminate. The common dynamic of humankind, in our otherwise unique journey from here to there, is the progression of our physical bodies from birth to death. My first husband died of leukemia before our boys turned 2-years-old. That was twenty-seven years ago.
Now, as a Certified End of Life doula (Together Forward), I have a subtle sense Eddie is near when I accompany a client in their final chapter. As this perception evolved, I turned to my artistic friend, Cindy, to help with a project using his cremains. Wanting to offer her talents as a resource to my client's families as well, I first wanted to take advantage of her for myself.
Imagining I wanted something smoky and organic, Cindy curiously inquired about Eddie's eyes and I was suddenly and gloriously veered in a completely different direction. He had the most intoxicatingly blue eyes and I loved the idea of that color being represented through Cindy's work for me.
I watched her set up her area, masked and properly distanced, with unexpected emotion. I had never seen Eddie's ashes, and now some of them rested in a silver spoon next to one with glass pieces in varying shades of blue. It was a magical experience, witnessing Cindy layer glass and ash, more glass, and more ash, building this one-of-a-kind cabochon. The result was still organic and moving, but so much finer in its hues of cerulean.
As an End of Life doula (Together Forward), I use my practice of ritual to quiet my mind to the sacredness of a noted transition, honing my focus. The few minutes I take in meditation, before entering a client's space will forever include my hand over this necklace."
What I enjoyed about this experience, was giving Martha something she will cherish forever in jewelry that, not only represents her personal memories but because my designs including mandalas and what they represent. The mandala symbolizes wholeness in a cosmic diagram that can remind individuals of their direct relation to infinity, that life is never ending and everything is connected. How fitting that the ashes of a loved one should be surrounded by a mandala and the spiritual journey it represents.
To learn more about Martha and her End of Life practice visit her website. She is a INELDA Certified End of Life doula.
To create your own Personal Memory Jewelry piece, please contact me via email to discuss what you would like. Jewelry can create such lasting memories, make it something special.
