In search of a lovely gem or two? There are mines that even the Irish can look into.
Mining is no easy feat. Just imagine the patience and stamina that it takes to sift through waters with a little basket in hopes that you’ll catch a little spec of gold somewhere along the way. Or better yet, miners have the unpleasant and often hazardous task of spelunking in areas that are crowded and dark all in a search for gorgeous stones. Its hard to imagine that when you look at a gold and stone ring that so much of this went into even cultivating it, especially if you aren’t the person pulling that part of the weight.
I have done the gold panning thing where the hopes of catching some free-floating AU can propel even the least likely of us to try something new. For the girls who love gold, the thought of catching it yourself can be quite tempting. I should know.
But, alas my story did not end with me
catching any gold, if you even want to call it a story. It was an experience and one that I was glad that I had. Why? Because, I could picture that life from my five hours spent in a remote area holding a pan searching for gold. At the finale of my day, despite the inflated hopes, I walked away with nilch. But, I did get a brief synopsis of gold-panning and it’s character. There’s a lot of solitude, alot of sitting or standing still and alot of just being, waiting and wishing.
For the miners out there, yours is a bit of a different animal all together. It’s probably not the best career for a claustrophobic, but still, someone has to go out looking in the cracks and crevices. Extraction these days is not just limited to gemstones, but to other types of matter like rocks and gravel.
And mining is no stranger to Ireland. There are mines to be had and worked in, if that is the one thing that calls you. I think it is nice to get even the smallest insight into a career or field such as this one. It really makes looking at a beautiful pieces of jewelry become more of a moving piece of where did this originate and how did it get to me?
