As a young teenager I was intrigued by rocks and minerals. I had a great collection and a black light. Shortly after moving to NC my Mother called to let me know of a mineral mine close by. I never knew where it was and never seem to have the time to research where it actually was. Soon after my Mom passed. I was offered an opportunity to show my photography in a little town named Hiddenite. I had no idea what that little town was all about. On my way to the location of my debut I saw a sign that said Hiddenite Emerald Mine. Holy cow! This must have been the place my Mother told me about! I decided I needed to stop on the way back to at least inquire about setting up a time to actually dig for rocks and minerals. They had a table outside where you could buy rocks and minerals. I wanted to buy a pretty blue stone but a voice in my head told me it wasn't necessary. After inquiring about days and hours of operation, I left. I knew I would be back one day.
My week ahead as a flight attendant was a busy time. Some days would start out with five flights in the first day. After each flight it was our job to make certain the cabin was clean and all seatbelts were crossed and ready for the next flight. Oddly enough I came to a row where one seat already had the safetybelt crossed. On top was a gift left for me. It was a blue heart shaped stone. I cried, it immediately touched my soul. No wonder I didn't to buy any stones the other day. Much to my surprise, it was also the anniversary of my Mother's passing.
A few more years past before making time to get back to Hiddenite. Actually 10 years.
I didn't know what to expect. When I arrived I met two women getting out of their car. I asked them if they had ever done this sort of thing before and they said no. I introduced myself and told them my story of how I came about coming to dig rocks. They found my story inspiring and invited me to join them. We started the day digging but we really didn't know what we were finding. I found some quartz right away. On the way back to the entrance I came upon some erosion with small emeralds and jasper. Even though I was content with my findings we all agreed we would try our luck buying a bucket and sluicing. The mine has a variety of buckets to choose from. I happen to pick a bucket that had Emeralds and other Hidden gems. Did you know an Emerald doesn't have to be green? One in particular was a heart shaped Emerald. It was the perfect way to end a day decicated to my Mom.
