Turquoise

This year, my husband discovered my love for turquoise. It was our anniversary and I paused in front of a glass display cabinet stunned by the varying shades, textures, and sizes of the stones. I honestly hadn't seen stones as large as some of the ones on display. Even the Squash Blossom jewelry is made of smaller chunks of stones. I told him I would feel more like a queen wearing one of those necklaces than I ever would wearing ropes of diamonds.

I once had the pleasure of being assigned The Anthropology of Turquoise by Ellen Maloy a strange book where I learned the chemistry of turquoise: CuAl6(PO4)4(OH)8*4H2O, blended with its history and mysticicsm. In the book it is noted that in 1652,Thomas Nichols said, "Many strange things beyond faith are reported concerning the vertues of this stone, which nothing but excesse of faith can believe." But, my favorite bit of history is that in Egyptian prayer the words for water and turquoise are interchangeable. For me, a woman who still pretends to be a mermaid every chance she gets, this trivia is like locking puzzle pieces together.

On Sunday, I rested this solid, steady, circle of turquoise on my chest. The weight of it was like a soothing palm, warm and soft... and I did feel royal. Thank you, dear one.

~Princess Words like Water