Before a diamond graces the crystalline shelves at Tiffanys … before it gets inset in a crown of silver or gold to be displayed in all its glory … before it comes to rest on a woman’s slender finger or be cushioned against her collarbone … it undergoes one of the most rigorous, mysterious and largely unseen journeys in our known universe.
Diamonds are formed 100 miles below the surface of the earth in the upper mantle. Under high temperatures and the greatest pressure, billions of carbon atoms bond together over millions of years to start growing an orderly crystalline structure.
What’s fascinating is that the process may be interrupted by a change in temperature, pressure, source of carbon, etc. and the diamond crystals could sit for millions or even hundreds of millions of years, before they start growing again.
They are then brought to the surface by deep-seated and violent volcanic eruptions, some that occurred a long time ago in the Earth's history. When mined, diamonds look like cloudy rocks. To become the precious stones we cherish so much, they go through a rigorous, time-consuming process.
First, the cleaving - splitting the rough stone into separate pieces. Then comes bruting, also known as girdling, where two diamonds are ground against each other to create a rough finish.
Next is the facet formation and cutting where the cutter places the rough on a rotating arm and uses a spinning wheel to polish the rough. This creates the smooth and reflective facets on the diamond.
The beauty of a diamond lies in the mathematical precision of the cuts that maximize light and brilliance through the 58 facets. If you sacrifice on the cut, the ring will sparkle less. In fact if you sacrifice any part of the entire formation process of the diamond, you compromise its final quality.
It’s the hidden, unseen, refining, and rigorous formation process of a diamond coming to life that determines the brilliance of the final stone.
There are times in our lives when we too go through a hidden, unseen, refining, and rigorous process of self-formulation – the training ground for your career, your dreams and your aspirations.
However, you might feel the process is taking too long; it’s sometimes years before the structure of the life you hope for starts coming together.
The process may be interrupted by a lack of opportunities, money, ill health, a lack of clarity, etc.
You may also go through painful personal experiences – breakup, divorce and even the death of a loved one - that feel like a violent eruption - a disruption to your life and a delay of your dreams.
When all is said and done, you may feel dull, faded, irrelevant, lost - clouded spiritually, mentally and emotionally.
But something begins to stir.
You start to welcome the cleaving – being made separate from things, habits or people that don’t build, edify or grow you.
Your edges begin to get polished, sharpened and clarity begins to take form before you.
Your dreams start to turn into reality, one edge, one facet at a time. The hidden no longer stays veiled; as your light and brilliance start to shine – with the added layering of character and wisdom.
Insight Inspiration:
It’s the season of the unseen that determines the brilliance of the seen.
So don’t despise the unseen season in your life – the trials, the hard work, the tears, the frustration and the waiting.
See them as the foundation of the awesomeness you are about to unleash.
Rest in them and seek joy even when there’s little to be found.
For in that darkness of shadow and night is a spark of the great things that await you.
Think on it.
