Once upon a time, someone said that diamonds held unimagined, intrinsic value.
A diamond is forever. A diamond is love. A diamond proves true worth and commitment.
A diamond is priceless.
Which also means they’re worthless. Diamonds are valuable because someone said they were valuable. We, the general public, fell for it. No other reason.
But I have my own diamonds. Only they aren’t the ones you’re thinking of. They are, in fact, much, much more valuable.
These are the real “diamonds” that society values above anything else: romantic relationships.
These kinds of diamonds I have in plenty. I’ve rarely not had once, since I was nineteen. I even have had more than one at a time (the ultimate dream?). Swimming in a sea of diamonds. Okay, that sounds painful. You get the point, I hope. I have love(s) of my life and I have no intention of that ever changing. And yet…
Am I any better off with lots of diamonds versus “only” one?
Or having any at all? Do I need ANY diamonds? If I “only” have crystals (let’s equivocate crystals to friendships), am I worse off? Does my life hold less value? Some of my friends have not a single “diamond” among them, and yet their support networks, their “people,” are the envy of anyone who meets them.
Diamonds can be fake.
They can hold little to no value for their owner.
There are other gems, rubies, sapphires, crystals (have you seen a gorgeous rose quartz?).
I spent a good portion of my life focused on my search for my diamonds.
I am awash in the love of my partners. Because it’s certainly not easy to get them! There is tremendous effort spent acquiring them and shining them, diamonds are not something you pick up at the beach! That is sea glass, my friend, and it is pretty at a glance, but it is not the same.
But I don’t need my diamonds to be happy. I want them, because that is what I want. Because they are diamonds that are precious to me. Not because society told me, not because my family told me, but because they bring me joy. And I do not value my rubies, sapphires, emeralds, and crystals any less.
I am curious, though.