Do you have any heirlooms in your possession?  Have you found out as much as you can about them?  What is their story?  While you are thinking about it, it would be a good idea to write that down!

My heirloom for today is my grandmother’s ring.  I have always known about the ring and I was thrilled when my mother let me have it.

My grandmother had this ring.  It was given to her by her boyfriend when she was 15 years old, almost 82 years ago.

Times were tough and my grandmother found herself having to pawn her treasured ring. According to my mother, she had to either buy medicine or a coat for someone in the family.  My mother was upset because my grandmother had promised her the ring – “this ring will be yours one day”.  There wasn’t much she could do; the decision was made and the ring was already gone when my mother found out.

A short time passed.  My grandmother’s sister told her that she had bought the ring from the pawn shop.  Unfortunately, my grandmother didn’t have the money to buy it back from her.

Yes, you read that last sentence correctly.  See?  Do you think you are the only one with family drama like this?  Guess again…

My grandmother had shared this with my mother.  More time passed and the family was together.  My mother’s cousin one day stated that she was going to get a ring from her mother.  My mother asked her what it looked like.  She described the ring.  My mother went up to her aunt and proclaimed:  “You have something of mine and I want it back”.

When my mother graduated grammar school, her aunt gave her the ring.  My mother had won the battle of the ring.

A few years ago, my uncle was in town for a visit.  He had made jewelry in the past and we found ourselves going through my mother’s jewelry box, looking for a necklace he said he had made for my mom.  It was fun as they were reminiscing and I was able to also look through some cool looking stuff!  It was at that point that my mother gave me the ring.

I wear the ring often – at least a few times per week.  I almost always get compliments on it when someone notices it for the first time.  It makes me smile.  I’m glad that they got the ring back, even under the circumstances.  If my great-aunt hadn’t gone to the pawn shop, the ring would have been lost forever!

Thanks to Nancy Chovancek, for the inspiration for today’s blog post!