JEWELRY STONES

Have you been to a jewelry store before, and seen the brilliancy the stones radiates?

It was a long time ago and I was enjoying the company of a female friend of mine as we walked one of the busy streets of Lagos. The roads were thronged with people heading in different directions and I loved it; the noise, the accepted confusion, the press of bodies and the smoky air just made the environment palatable to my sense of understanding.

We were on our way to get foodstuffs for her family and since I happen to be at their place, I decided to tag along. She's tasked with getting foodstuffs for the family whenever her mum is occupied or too weary from the office to stop by the market because she is highly competent when it comes to negotiating prices just like her mother. You know it is just something she is good at. We alighted from a public bus at the bus-stop and seeing that the market we were heading to is still deep in the thriving area of Ayobo, we decided to exercise our legs.

I enjoy traversing the busy streets of Lagos in my leisure hour, it is exercise enough, and my friend seems to think the same thing because looking at her from my periphery, I can see her stride matching mine. And as we were walking, our senses were sharp and working at full mode, seeing as Ayobo was not a place for the dull minded.

After walking for what seems like minutes, we entered the hubbub of the market and were assaulted by different smells from different products, but we were already used to the smell and so, our stride remained purposeful, but faltered repeatedly whenever we are breasted by an oncoming civilian or moving carts. We didn’t stop or listen to the enticing words of merchants or the pleading eyes of business people who seems to have not made a sale since daybreak because my friend already has a favorite merchant who deals well with her.

As we were navigating the busy street of the market, we suddenly turned a corner and that was when I saw an intriguing brilliance as the sun flashed across the edges of some jewelry stones that was carefully placed in their racks in a glass-like box.

What struck me and gave me pause was the way the sun struck the stones and amplified the brilliance and beauty of the stones. My friend stopped and called out to me and I had to move and continue my meditation on the way. And finally we got to the merchant’s shop and I was able to digest what hit me.

The way the sun hit the stones at the right time the brilliance was needed, is the same way we need the light of God to hit us at the right time. If I was interested in buying jewelries, the show of light is more than enough to pique my interest and draw me into the shop. But that was not the only thing that drew my attention to it, it was their shapes and how they sat snugly and comfortable in the jewelry racks.

What I realized is that the stones were refined, perfectly cut into shape and waiting for the reflection of light that will bring out its brilliance, not the other way around. If the stones were not cut, shaped and graded into their specific sizes, the reflection of light that bounced off its surface will not shine because it will reflect against a rugged and uneven shape.

So, as human beings that wants to be exceptional, we must be refined, tailored and beautiful in every way; in our speech, dressing, profession and skills so that when the light of opportunity shines over us, it will amplify what we possess and open doors we never thought we would access.

In God’s Love,

Okunola Peace.