We are all Diamonds
The summer after my shift was spent in wonder and gratitude for a world I’d never truly seen before. As I cycled around Vancouver, I found myself marvelling at the abundance, variety, and greenness of the trees in my neighbourhood. I noticed the beauty in plants and flowers I’d previously taken for granted.
This heightened awareness of my surroundings came into play toward the end of an unusually hot month. Cycling home from a short trip to the local grocery store, I stopped at a traffic light. As I looked down to place my foot on the curb, I noticed a pink sparkle in the roadside silt. At first, I assumed it was a small shard of glass and dismissed it. But the light was red, and something told me to pick it up. Feeling slightly foolish for still being attracted to sparkly stuff, I reached down and pinched the tiny fragment between my thumb and forefinger - almost flinging it away when a sharp edge poked my thumb. Again, I indulged my intuition and held onto it until I arrived at my tiny house and parked my bike. Upon closer inspection, it appeared I had picked up a small diamond.
The discovery sparked a childhood memory from the early 1970s. When my granny came to stay with us for the holidays, she lost a diamond from her engagement ring. I wasn’t aware of how distressed she was until I saw my dad industriously hoovering every inch of the house and asked what he was doing. After hearing the story, I followed him to the basement and watched as he emptied the vacuum bag onto the ping-pong table. Carefully spreading the thick layer of dust and debris, Dad challenged my siblings and me to find a needle in the haystack. An hour or two later, my sister and I gave up and went back upstairs, but my brother persevered. Eventually, we heard a triumphant shout and rushed down to see what he’d found. We have a wonderful family photo of my granny (beaming with joy in front of a table topped with silty-grey fluff) with her arm around her 8-year-old grandson, who is proudly holding up the lost diamond.
As I inspected the diamond I’d just found and wondered whether it was real, I decided it didn’t matter. It was either a sign from my granny or a much-needed symbol of perseverance.
When I shifted out of 3D consciousness, I felt strangely alone and unsupported. Pushing forward with my life’s purpose despite disbelief, dismissal, and disinterest was - and still can be - exhausting. But, I will never doubt the energy of unconditional Love. I will never be deterred from sharing the message of hope. As Jane Goodall said, “Without hope, people fall into apathy and do nothing.” Jane’s message, like mine, is not one of passive optimism, but of active and determined action to create a better future - even when the challenges seem overwhelming.
And so I press on, knowing that each of us is a diamond - a limitless soul of love and light in human form - presented with the opportunity in this lifetime to remember our divine essence.
Through self-actualization, we can save ourselves, save each other, and save the planet we all share.
D 🩵
