Emeralds and Diamonds

Drew, today was your mother's twenty-sixth birthday and I understood fully when she told me that she didn't feel like celebrating. Although another year is a milestone for any person, this year it just doesn't seem like there's anything to celebrate. After much coaxing, I was finally able to persuade her to at least go to dinner. "We are not celebrating" I tried to tell her, " we are commemorating."

For her birthday gift I took to heart something that she told me soon after your passing. She told me that she wanted a necklace with your birthstone to wear around her neck so she could always have your memory near. Little did I know just how significant your birthstone was...you see, the birthstone of May is the Emerald and Emeralds are unique for many reasons:

Firstly, Emeralds are a type of beryl crystal. Pure beryl itself is clear and very common. Only when pure beryl is accompanied by trace amounts of other elements does the beryl become colored. In the case of Emeralds, the beryl becomes infused with chromium and vanadium. Normally, these two elements are confined to completely different parts of the earth's crust and never meet one another. However, during intense techtonic processes these elements can come into contact with each other (although it is very rare) and in some of those instances they can also come into contact with pure beryl (although this is even more rare). Only when both of these combinations occur (chromium combining with vanadium and that combination being combined with pure beryl) is an Emerald created.

Secondly, Emeralds are unique because they are the only type of gem where inclusions (aka 'imperfections', 'scratches' or 'fissures') are common. This is because Emeralds, although very hard for a gemstone, are also very fragile due to their chemical composition. Indeed, one of the easiest ways to tell the difference between a natural Emerald (one that was mined out of the earth) and a 'lab-created' Emerald (one that is chemically identical but created in a laboratory) is to examine the inclusions. Natural Emeralds have many distinct inclusions whereas lab-created (aka synthetic) Emeralds can be nearly flawless. In fact, not only are inclusions tolerated in Emeralds, sometimes they are actually sought after as their presence gives the Emerald character.

Thirdly, Emeralds are unique because no other combination of elements can match the deep green color they posses. Although there are many beautiful gems and many valuable jewels, none is even remotely similar to the Emerald in color. This is one reason Emeralds are so valuable.

Below is a picture of the actual pendant that I gave your mother for her birthday. You see, in many ways the Emerald is very meaningful to your situation. Just as the Emerald is rare because it is only created when several different elements from different parts of the earth's crust come into contact (a phenomenon that rarely occurs), so too were you unique because your disorder resulted from the combination of a single inactive gene being found in the exact same location on both your mother's and your father's chromosomes (a phenomenon which is also extremely rare). Additionally, just as natural Emeralds posses inclusions that weaken them and make them fragile, so too was the physical body that you possessed while on this earth. It was naturally imperfect and possessed imperfections which weakened it. Furthermore, just as the Emerald possesses a color which no other gemstone can match, so too did your presence in our family bring a happiness and joy that no one will ever be able to replicate. In short, you were our Emerald.

There is however, another stone which is much more representative of your current state: the diamond. You see, whatever imperfections or rarities you possessed while on this earth have been washed away. You no longer possess an imperfect body. No longer are you infected by a rare disease that resulted from a rare chromosomal combination. While you may have been our Emerald while here on this earth, you are now our diamond: flawless, strong, beautiful...perfect. For this reason, the necklace I gave your mother was a natural Emerald that sits below a real diamond. Both represent you.

 

With Love,

Your Father