Who Says Material Girls Can’t Meditate? 6 Lessons I Learned From Jewelry

Just because I love shiny things doesn’t mean I’m shallow.

When I was a child, I loved untangling my mother’s jewelry.

She’d give me a clump of necklaces and I’d sit for hours working out the tiny knots one by one until the cluster gave way, releasing the imprisoned strands of silver and gold.

One day I noticed vases filled with surplus jewelry at my local Goodwill.

Seeing the delicate treasure boxes, stirred something in me. I bought one and a hobby was born.

Now I buy old jewelry, process it, and sell, for fun.

Cleaning vintage pieces, bringing them back to their former glory, makes me feel like a museum curator.

Pulling broken pieces apart and sorting the pretty beads, is as calming and satisfying to me now as it was when I was a child, each tiny bead an individual work of art.

Now and again I even come across a piece with real gold or diamonds.

And I still love detangling big clumps.

It’s in these quiet moments, my hands busily working, my eyes bedazzled by pretty things, I have epiphanies.

There’s unexpected wisdom in these accidental meditations. As my hobby becomes a metaphor for life, it enlightens and inspires me.

When I see a broken piece of jewelry, my first thought is: “What can I salvage?” Are there, charms? Beads? Clasps? If I can accumulate enough of even the smallest findings, someone will see the value and be able to use them.

We have so much in the west, but we waste so much. Just because something seems like it’s come to the end of its life cycle, doesn’t mean it has.

My goal is to throw away as little and repurpose as much as possible. Nothing gets thrown out if it can have a second life.

Here’s the lesson:

The less you waste the more you have. Rethink everything you throw out. Most things have further value if you look at them in a different way.

Sometimes it takes hours for me to sort through a box of jewelry, but if I go slow and look close, there are often hidden treasures.

More than once, I’ve found real gold and diamond pieces at the very bottom of a container of costume jewelry. If I rushed I would miss it.

Here’s the lesson:

Everything takes time. If you try to rush through life, you might miss something important.

Often when I advertise whole pieces of jewelry they don’t sell, but if I take them apart, they sell instantly.

By deconstructing them, I free them from imposed expectations. From that point on, the possibilities are limitless.

They can become something different. The components can be reformed into anything by anyone.

They are free to be reborn.

Here’s the lesson:

Even though we’re conditioned to see things only one way, everything is more than just what it is supposed to be and it’s up to us to be brave enough to deconstruct what isn’t working and reimagine everything — including ourselves and our world.

Broken jewelry is useless to most people.

But broken jewelry has the most value for me and is a wealth of raw materials.

It’s also a calming activity.

Necklaces and bracelets with broken clasps, single pretty earrings, tarnished silver with hidden hallmarks. These are the rejects that I rehabilitate back into society.

Here’s the lesson:

There is no such thing as useless, worthless, or hopeless, in people or objects. If you find value in someone, including yourself, or something, there is value.

Period.

My little hobby might sound like slow torture to most people, but I love it and I don’t care what anyone thinks.

I do it because it soothes me and I like it. I enjoy researching the pieces I find, what the stamps mean, and who the designers are. I’m at a point now where I have an eye for quality and that’s kind of fun.

Sure, I’ve found a way to make it pay for itself, but even if it wasn’t paying off, I’d probably still do it and figure out another way around the cost.

Here’s the lesson:

Do what you love even if it seems weird (as long as it’s not immoral or illegal, obviously). That way, if the money follows as the saying goes, that's great. If it’s going to be a business or artistic pursuit you’ll need to enjoy it to stick with it long enough for it to pay off.

Most projects take time to get off the ground so if that’s the case for you, at least you’ll get to spend time doing what you enjoy.

I used to sell jewelry for wearing but it accumulated too fast and there wasn’t much of a market for it.

Once I found ways to capitalize on the broken pieces, I realized I could create new opportunities within the framework of what I was already doing.

I just had to rethink it.

Here’s the lesson:

You can probably create new opportunities with what you already have or do if you think inside the box differently.

I’m not a Yogi, sitting on a mountain thinking deep thoughts to save the world. But my accidental meditations have led me to some interesting food for thought.

When you do something that you love, that satisfies you and gives your brain a little creative time-out, it can be a good way to open up your soul and let your guard down so the Universe can slip a little wisdom to you on the sly.

Thanks so much for reading!

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