Many years ago, when my maternal grandfather wanted to buy my grandmother a necklace, bracelet, ring or earrings, he would take his watch to the local pawn shop. He’d turn it over to the owner as collateral, purchase the piece of jewelry, and then make payments from his job in the shipyard until he could get his watch back. He did this several times during their marriage, until he died of cancer from the asbestos he scraped off the insides of the ships.

I never saw my grandmother wear expensive jewelry, but by the time I was old enough to notice that, she was in her sixties, working at the local hospital restocking the vending machines, and she had a far more casual fashion sense. But on her wall, in a collage of family photos, she had a wonderful 1940s/50s black and white of her and my grandfather. He’s gazing at her lovingly while she stands self-consciously at his side in a stylish skirt/jacket combo topped with a lovely hat.

When my grandmother passed in the 1980s, the jewelry was split up between my mother and aunt. They kept certain pieces and passed on others to their respective daughters. Amethyst is my birthstone, so my mother gave me a dainty necklace with an amethyst stone pendant and matching earrings.

Over time, the style of jewelry I wear has changed considerably, though I’ve held onto the pieces because they are family heirlooms, and it means a great deal to me that they were a gift from my mother. However, as I’ve hit my 50s, I’ve also become the type of person who doesn’t like to see something someone else could more actively appreciate languishing in a jewelry box. So recently I asked my aunt if she thought her granddaughters would like the earrings/necklace. We’re all in agreement that we want these pieces to stay in the family, and these two girls are accomplished, delightful young women who love my aunt, care for her wellbeing, and will appreciate the history of the pieces. My aunt also felt the necklace and earrings reflect the style of jewelry they currently wear.

I told my aunt I’d bring the pieces with me on my next visit to her home in Virginia, a couple months or so in the future. Right after that conversation, I went to collect the amethysts from my jewelry box. The plan was to set them aside so when the time came, I’d remember to take them. That’s where I hit a snag.

I couldn’t find the necklace!

The earrings were there, but I couldn’t find that dainty little gold chain and sparkling purple stone. However, I didn’t panic right away. At some point over the years I’d decided on a decorative use for necklaces I rarely wore. I draped them on the corners of pictures, over lampshades, or embellished the necks of vases and pottery pieces with them. Most of the necklaces were larger pendants on long chains, but large or small, I’m pretty consistent about my necklace/pendant sizes. 16-18” chains, with mid-sized pendants, usually about 1-1 ½ inches in size. The amethyst had rarely been worn because I don’t wear much dainty stuff or gold, and it was both of those things.

That was when I had a terrible thought. Had I draped the short, fragile little thing over the corner of a picture and perhaps it had fallen to the floor behind a piece of furniture? I checked, and no, I didn’t find anything. But what if in vacuuming under the furniture, it had been sucked up and thrown away in a full vacuum bag? We have a bunch of natural areas layered in pine mulch, and with seven animals and two humans routinely tracking it in, the grinding clack-clack of items being sucked up in the vacuum is routine. A tiny necklace wouldn’t even be noticed.

Hoping I was wrong, weeks have gone by with me looking for this necklace. Believe me, I have checked EVERYWHERE, not just pictures, pottery and lampshades, but also on statues, awards and figurines. I checked the pockets of every item of clothing, travel bag and purse. I have a group of stuffed figures/animals on top of a shelf in my office. One of them is the doll from Rudolph’s Island of Misfit Toys. On her wrist are the baby bracelets that Scott and I wore in the hospital. Hope leaped back to the top of my mind when I thought of her, because surely putting that amethyst on her neck would make so much sense. Yes it would--but nope, not there.

And so on and so forth. If you can think of a spot, I looked for this necklace there. I was out of ideas. Or was I?

I am Wiccan, so you’d think trying a Find spell would have occurred to me MUCH sooner. But I classify myself as a “spiritual” Wiccan, and what I mean by that is I practice very little actual spellcraft, either the more complicated kinds or simple kitchen magics. I tend to feel whatever is happening in my life is meant to be, to teach me lessons or give me certain experiences. If I have a sick family member or know that somewhere in the world needs a particularly high dose of healing or help, I will pray/channel energy for that purpose and ask that it be applied for the highest good. I don’t think of doing things to help myself with day-to-day challenges. That’s what the Lord and Lady gave me a brain, heart, will and self-discipline to do for myself.

However, I went to the Internet (the quick spellfinder, lol), and stumbled on a Find spell suggestion drawn from an old friend - Llewellyn, the publishing company from which I bought Wiccan guidebooks in my early exploration of that faith. The person who recommended this spell said she’d never known it not to work within TWENTY-FOUR hours of doing it.

So here goes – you imagine your missing item. You imagine a silver cord around it. And then you repeat this three times, applying as much energy/focus to it as you can, as you pantomime drawing that looped cord and the object toward you:

What was lost is found / With my magical cord around / Whether far or near / Come now to me here.

I also modified a recommended visualization, climbing a mountain to where a little man was meditating, and asking him “little man, where is my necklace?” He doesn’t answer, but you “leave” the thought with him, along with your thanks for his help.

I did that chant and visualization combo Thursday night before I went to sleep, and Friday morning while I was walking the dogs. During that walk I started thinking about places I could re-check, and realized I hadn’t carefully looked at the clothes hangers for dresses I took to conferences. Maybe I’d draped the necklace on one to pair it with a particular dress and had forgotten about it? So when I returned from the dog walk, I checked the closet where I keep those dresses. No luck.

I went back into my office, and gazed at the shelves where I keep my writing awards. There was the necklace, hanging on the point of my RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award.

WTF?!

I had checked those awards, that shelf, MULTIPLE times. But there it was. I felt such joy holding it, realizing I hadn’t lost my mother’s gift, or the jewelry that my grandfather had originally given my grandmother. “Wow” was the word that came to my mind. Just wow.

In my Arcane Shot trilogy, my three witch heroines are equipped with FAR more powers/abilities than your average Wiccan like myself. Yet their storyline and practices are guided by the tenets that form the spiritual foundation to the Wiccan faith. It has been awhile since I’ve been reminded of the simple pleasures/joys its practical application can bring.

So I thank the spirits—including that little man--for bringing the necklace back to me!

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