A Diamond’s Worth

A little story for your inner child

“One day, you will be found and mined. You will be held to sun, revered and placed in a wonderful piece of jewellery! An exquisite necklace or shimmering ring!”

said the other rocks to Little Diamond.

It was a story they told her every night and she twinkled softly to herself, imagining that day!

The other rocks loved her beauty, but the day she was extracted from the cold, dark depths of the earth and really allowed to shine, would surely be a moment to behold!

Her purpose was to reflect the light after all, and there was no light down in the mine.

And so it came to pass. 

One day, Little Diamond was indeed, discovered!

It felt exciting as people marvelled at her radiance. As she was chiselled, buffed and polished to perfection, she heard someone say;

“This is a special one. A rare pink diamond. It is worthy of a crown!”

How her jewel heart shone!

She - Little Diamond, to be placed in a real, precious crown! With elegant sapphires, rubies or emeralds! It made her giddy with glee!

And so it came to pass.

There she sat, proudly gleaming in the magnificent head piece of the most beautiful Queen in the land, who astounded people far and wide with her loveliness.

When Little Diamond wasn’t being worn, experts would gently polish her, tell her how valuable she was, sometimes even put her on a pedestal.

But the Queen, didn’t really love her. After all, as a royal, she owned hundreds of precious stones.

And being among the other gems (who could be a little haughty) wasn’t the same as hanging out with the rocks in her childhood mine.

She no longer felt special, was just another shiny thing. One of many shiny things. And too many over-buffed shiny things placed together can become ……..well…..rather vulgar.

Maybe it was her restlessness making itself known, but over time Little Diamond grew loose in her setting, until one evening at a fabulous ball, she found herself detaching from the golden crown she lived in.

Out she fell, rolling on to the marble floor like a penny!

As the room was full of opulence, this went unnoticed and Little Diamond found herself - would you believe it - stuck to the sole of a plain old black shoe! She scuffed as she felt herself being walked around the red carpet, and later that night, trodden down into a cold, hard pavement!

Still, diamonds were used to pressure, she’d had it all her formative years.

As the wind picked up, off she flew, hitching a ride upon a sticky leaf, before finally coming to rest in a children’s playground full of overgrown grass and gravel. It was unkempt, teeming with litter. As she lay there - in a place that felt blacker and lonelier than any mine - there was one thing she knew would never be crushed, her spirit.

And one sunny day in Spring, as she lay face down in the dirt, Little Diamond felt herself being unexpectedly lifted and examined. She quivered with delight as she was held to the sun by a little girl playing with her older sister.

“Look! It’s a diamond!”

She told her sister.

“Don’t be dumb. It’s just glass!”

Said her sister dismissively.

She looked around, disheartened.

Her big sister was probably right, there were lots of broken bottles around…..

(she was eight and she knew everything, after all).

But nevertheless, the little girl felt herself enchanted by the myriad of rainbows darting from sunbeams in her chubby palm.

She knew better!

(She was five and believed in magic, after all).

“Well it’s MY diamond and I am a Fairy Princess!”

She declared, defiantly.

As Little Diamond sat, covered in mud, bits of gum and other icky stuff she dare not contemplate, she had a funny feeling. A nice feeling. Despite never having looked so rough, she had never felt so treasured.

It didn’t matter who ‘realised’ she was a diamond.

She knew her life’s best work was being done right now and validation was irrelevant.

As she glittered happily in the tiny hand of one grubby little girl who truly loved her, she realised that no matter what your situation, how entrenched in mud you feel, someone, somewhere will eventually notice your sparkle.

In fact, she understood - as all diamonds come to - that a jewel always shines that bit brighter, for finding herself in the dirt.

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