I am delighted to share this story that took a full year to come
full circle back to me. I've decided to put it in this blog so that I don't lose it.
September, 2005:
My husband and I took our jewelry to a Antique street faire in Coburg
Oregon. We were having a great day after a cold early morning September
set-up in 2005. As the sun came out so did the people, including a group
of young college students from the local University. Four of the five
girls had been married that summer, and the fifth was single with nobody
in her future. The unmarried young woman was looking at Eisenberg glitzy
jewels, and trying on drippy, expensive sparkling bibs, and eventually
tried on a very pretty earring and necklace in a pastel blue rhinestone.
She fell in love with it, and flounced around the booth, dancing in front
of the mirror telling her friends she should buy this necklace for her
wedding, and then laughing saying, I don't even have anyone in my life,
but I should save it for when I do get married." Her friends giggled and
joked with her, and she put it down and moved on to the next tent.
An hour later, one of the married ladies returned to our booth and picked
the necklace and earrings up and brought it to me. She said, "I just have
a feeling I am suppose to buy this for my friend
my husband and he said I could if I had the money. What is the best you
can do? I am going to put it away and give it to her when she gets
engaged." As I was thinking about what "best price" I was going to quote,
she added, "I'm going to pray for a special man to come into her life."
I thought to myself, "what a special friend this is to be so thoughtful."
I gave the necklace to the young married woman at my cost, because I
thought it was so nice of her. She immediately got tearful and explained
to me that the unmarried woman wasn't dating, didn't have anyone in her
life that she was interested in and all of her friends had gotten married
in the past year or two. She said all she wanted for her friend was a
wonderful man to come into her life. Off she went with her necklace
carefully wrapped in tissue and in a little sheer jewelry bag closed with
a ribbon.
September, 2006:
After doing our first show at the Antique fair last year in Coburg, we
decided we didn't need to get up so early, and that it would be better to
set up a little later than we did the year before. We were setting up in
the daylight and the weather was much better. It was a delightful day,
and we were in a perfect setting with the morning sun shining on the
glitzy jewelry. The past year had been a little rough on us financially,
and so we really needed to have a good showing this year. Customers
started buying early, and we had a good start to the day. I watched
people trying on hats, picking out purses, looking at jewelry and trying
on gloves. I was thinking how much I love to display the lovely "girly"
items in my booth and have women of all ages come to look, try on, dream
of tea parties and dressing up, and buying if they could afford it.
All of a sudden, a very young pregnant woman with a large manilla envelope
boldly approached me and said, "Are you Ms. Esch?"
"yes," I replied.
"Ms. Esch, I am so glad that I was able to find you. Do you remember me
from last year? I bought a blue rhinestone necklace and earring set for
my friend to be married in?"
"Of course I remember! I have thought of that many times. It was so nice
of you."
She handed me the envelope and said, "I was hoping I would find you, I
wanted to bring this to you because you were so nice to give me an
affordable price on that set."
I opened the envelope to find a wedding invitation, the program to the
wedding, and pictures of the bride wearing the necklace and earrings. I
was overcome with tears of joy. On the back of the program was a story
entitled, "The necklace", and it told of the trip to the antique faire,
the young married woman buying the jewelry from me, and diligently praying
for her single friend to have prince charming walk into her life.
I found out that after the jewelry was purchased in September, a wonderful
young man fell in love with the single young woman and in January they
were engaged to be married. Six months later the wedding took place with
the bride wearing the blue rhinestone necklace and earrings. Now, my
sweet customer who purchased the jewelry for her friend was due to have a
little girl in just a matter of days.
It was a wonderful day at the Coburg Antique Street Fair, and from that
moment on I viewed the women and men and little girls who walked into my
booth differently. They were people with dreams, hopes and wishes; they
were people looking for gifts, mementos, reminders of days or people gone
by; and, were in my booth for a reason. I might not ever know the reason
they were there looking at the jewelry, but they were special.
Because we had struggled the past year, I had considered giving up selling
jewelry, but I've decided there is something intrinsically special about
jewelry, and it is an honor to present it to others.
