It's probably no surprise that I am often found with rocks in my pockets. Not really "valuable" rocks, just rocks that catch my eye for any variety of reasons. Some of my favorite rocks are the ones I could set and use, just the way they are. No cutting. No polishing.
I have been collecting these particular type rocks for several years, often finding them in my garden or on gravel roads. These smooth, typically roundish rocks were going to be the base of the most recent collection.
So when I saw a lot of these type of rocks recently at an auction, I was so excited. This like minded collector had put together jars of these stones perfect to mix into my new pieces. But when I opened the jar to his handwritten note, they became central to my collection.
"Natures work by the Mediterranean Sea at Torreamolinos Spain" was so much cooler than "discovered on my run and tucked into sweaty pockets."
I learn a lot from rocks. When I look at these smoothly polished stones it's hard for me to not think of how they became that way. They're stone, not playdough. Shaping rock is not a pretty process. It's dirty, it's abrasive, it's painful.
Sounds a lot like life, eh? The sandpaper of every day life tapering our edges. The waves of circumstance chipping our corners. The friction of other rocks leaving their mark on our lives. And you know, it's easy to be left feeling broken amidst these trials. But what if we were being polished?
What if we could not look at what was lost but at what remained? I think we would see the pieces that matter. Perhaps we would see ourselves as strong and capable and valuable and worthy--just as we are. And it was with those thoughts that this collection was birthed.
xo,
jilli
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