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The Lost Pendant
One thing lost and many things gained
Last week I took my 20-year-old daughter on a mother-daughter trip to Mexico. Whenever I travel, particularly out of the country, I take off the gold sovereign my grandfather gave me. I wear my sovereign necklace everyday, but I worry about losing it, especially if I’m going to be doing lots of swimming or outdoor activities. When I travel, I typically swap the sovereign out for a necklace that my daughter bought me from Goodwill when she was four. The necklace is a faux-amber, tear-shaped crystal that I love. It’s delicate and beautiful, but mostly I love it because whenever I put it on, I imagine my daughter choosing it from the Goodwill jewelry case when she insisted on wearing princess dresses over jeans with light blue Crocs.
After one of our snorkeling adventures I noticed that the crystal pendant had broken off of its chain. I realized this while we were walking to dinner. “Honey,” I yelped to my daughter, “my pendant is gone!”
My daughter is as practical as I am sentimental. “Oh well,” she said, “It’s okay Mom.”
Part of my impetus for going on this trip with my daughter was the feeling I have that time with her is slipping through my fingers. This summer my daughter is not coming home, opting instead to stay in an apartment in her college town. I can see the writing…
