Since I was sixteen years old, diamonds have deeply fascinated me. Not because of their material value, but because of their unique physical properties and sparkle.

I have learned a lot about jewellery and gems since then ­– about the history, craftsmanship and art of jewellery and gem cutting. I discovered many amazing details over the years, but nothing has ever fascinated me more than the sparkle of a diamond.

A diamond is the hardest natural substance on earth and it does reflect more light than any other gemstone. No one diamond is exactly like another, every single one has its own unique beauty. There are a large variety of cuts, all with their different properties. The more of them there are, the greater the sparkle that is reflected. Just this morning, while sitting on the sofa feeling a wonderful autumn morning dawn outside, I saw amazingly beautiful reflections of the warm glow from the fire in the stove in the diamond on my finger.

The sparkle was so still, almost subtle, yet so joyful and profound. Maybe this was just me that I was seeing, as the only things that I felt in this moment were an amazing stillness and joyful love for being who I am, like I am and where I am.

This was when I suddenly understood why I have always been fascinated by diamonds. When you look at them you see a beautiful gem; you know that it is precious, but what you see above all is a reflection of light. A diamond cannot do anything else than reflect the light that is cast on it – just like we in our essence are mirrors for each other to truly see ourselves.

Every diamond is different; most of them are white, but occasionally they do appear in every colour imaginable. They can have inclusions or be absolutely clear. Every diamond will reflect the same ray of light differently, depending on its cut and proportions and its inner structure. And yet, from a chemical point of view, all of them are made from highly compressed carbon.

We are the same: different in our outward appearances, but made up of the same particles in a strikingly similar way. Our essence is the same – love. We can connect to this essence anytime, thereby not only connecting to ourselves, but to everybody else.

The fiery glow in my diamond made me understand: We meet what we reflect and reflect what we meet.

This reminds me of the days where we are feeling joyful and light and suddenly we meet this joy and lightness everywhere – in others, nature or interactions – and where we never would have deemed this possible. What we see is what we radiate or shine out. Like diamonds, every other person in their unique way will reflect back to us what we radiate or shine out. There is no better or more effective way to reflect; every way is valuable and special.

We so often seek to change our lives by trying to change the circumstance we live in. We dream of things that might make our lives simpler or richer, we hope for the perfect partner, job or whatever, to arrive. We want to change everything around us, but do we realise that in fact there is just one thing that we can truly change? Ourselves.

Not by force or with a lot of effort – we do not need to learn things and do not have to become better. What we need to do is open up to the fact that we are wonderful just as we are. Deep inside our bodies we know all of this already and with our body we have the most faithful companion in whom we can always rely if we might need a truly wise answer.

Like a jewel that has not been cleaned and lovingly worn for a long time, we might be covered by dust of the ages and our surface might show some signs of wear, but deep inside we all are a gem.

Like an antique diamond we might need loving care and attention, but we cannot lose the ability to shine and sparkle from deep inside. It is simply up to us to shine and sparkle in our fullness again.

By Michael Kremer, Personal Assistant, Buchholz, Germany

Further Reading:
Returning to Our Essence
Aladdin’s Lamp – Cleaning a Teapot