I got my Mother’s Day present three months early– kind of like how I got my baby three months early. I couldn’t wait til May, so I opened it in February on A.’s birthday, a few days after it arrived in the mail.
I was surprised to find myself wanting a “mother ring.” {Incidentally, Wifey was equally surprised to find herself wanting a video camera for Mother’s Day. Yet another instance where gender roles have crept up on us unsuspectingly…} I barely knew what a mother ring was (which, by the way, is simply a ring or piece of jewelry that commemorates your child, perhaps involving the birthstone of said child), yet I found myself combing the internet for a unique ring to mark my becoming a mother; a symbol of my son that I would see on my hand all the time. Other markers have meant a lot to me: my tattoo, and my wedding and engagement rings. I am changed by major events in my life, so it seems fitting to have my physical appearance reflect that. The markers represent what my life has made me, and now they make just as much sense on my body as my fingernails or knee caps.
I had wondered about a planned “special moment” wherein the ring would meaningfully alight on my finger, but the birthday was such a crazy (good-crazy) day, the time for another ceremonious effort didn’t present itself. So, while I was nursing the boy before his welcome-to-the-world ceremony, I opened the box and untied the plum ribbon and slipped the ring on my finger saying, “Why thank you Mister Finn! It is beautiful!”
A.’s birthstone is an amethyst. I was pleased to discover that Earth sometimes makes amethysts GREEN in addition to the standard purple. So, here is my ring: a green amethyst set in silver, on a gold band, custom made by Andrea of Plum & Sage. (The photo she took of it adequately shows off its splendor.)
I found Andrea on Etsy after reaching maybe the 14th page of Google entries for “green amethyst ring.” I couldn’t be happier with it. It is the perfect marker for my son who made me a mother.
