Had an unexpected trip to Lewes, Delaware, this morning. Jessica called me yesterday asking if I could help her find her family heirloom engagement ring. It was her grandmother’s. She lost it 3 weeks ago while helping her husband build a vinyl fence. I asked the usual questions: why do you think it is in the yard, how big is the yard (¾ acre), what is the ring made of (platinum). I said I could travel down on Sunday morning if she doesn’t find it tonight. 

I told her when it gets dark, turn off all of the lights in the yard and then search the area with a flashlight. Hopefully, they would see the sparkle of the diamonds. No luck.

I arrived around 8 a.m., and they were waiting for me outside. Jessica showed me the area. The grass is really thick, and it was recently cut with the clipping still on the grass. Making it impossible to see using the flashlight trick. 

I got started, and the only sounds I was getting were sprinkler heads. After about 15 minutes, I got a good tone. I spread the grass apart, and I saw a silver circle; it was Jessica’s ring, but it was totally embedded in the dirt. Either it was stepped on, or the lawn tractor ran over it, pushing it into the ground. The flashlight trick wouldn’t work for this reason either, as the diamonds were covered in mud.

I took a few pictures and made it look like it wasn’t the ring. After a few minutes, I knocked on the door, and Jessica answered. I asked her a few more questions about where she thought the ring could be. While she was looking around thinking, I held up her ring. She continued to think and talk. After a minute or so, she finally saw the ring. She screamed! The look on her face was priceless. We took some pictures, and then I started my trek home. 

I love my hobby!