Wednesday, September 22, 2010

In Celebration of My Twin Sister!

Yes, I did Grow up Jewish, but my main sense of identity as a child was my status as a TWIN!  My twin sister, Gail, and I are not identical, but we would often finish each  other's sentences, and we talked  "we and us" rather than "I or me."  When we were away at different colleges, we would often purchase the same shirt, nightgown, etc. As we started families of our own, living apart became more difficult. Sadly, cousins who resembled each other did not grow up playing with each other.

Now as my son is now raising twin girls of his own, my sister Gail is coming to meet them, and I imagine we will reminisce about a shared childhood so long ago.I can't wait!


Petoskey stone and sterling silver necklace by Ruth Shapiro
As a side note, I must tell you about a special vacation with my sister. About 4 years ago, Gail invited me to come to visit, to go camping. I hadn't been camping in many, many years, so of course I jumped at the chance. We spent days searching in knee deep, freezing water along the shores of Lake Huron, near her home, for the famous Petoskey stones. We even got some young kids involved in a contest to see who could find the biggest and best examples of these fossils.* We filled pails, boxes,and shoes with the wonderful stones. You see, I had recently learned lapidary skills, and my brain was brimming with ideas for jewelry! Upon arriving at the airport to go home, I was asked by the airline luggage handler "What do you have in here, rocks?!!!!  LOL   Well in honor of my sister's visit to me, I'm posting a picture of a necklace I made from just one of those Petoskey stones, after slicing it into pieces and polishing and bezel setting each one!!
          
* A Petoskey stone is a rock and a fossil, often pebble-shaped, that is composed of a fossilized coral, Hexagonaria percarinata. The stones were formed as a result of glaciation, in which sheets of ice plucked stones from the bedrock, grinding off their rough edges and depositing them in the northwestern portion of Michigan's lower peninsula.
Petoskey stones are found in the Gravel Point Formation of the Traverse Group. They are fragments of a coral reef that was originally deposited during the Devonian period, about 350 million years ago. When dry, the stone resembles ordinary limestone but when wet or polished using lapidary techniques, the distinctive mottled pattern of the six-sided coral fossils emerges. It is sometimes made into decorative objects. Other forms of fossilized coral are also found in the same location.
In 1965, it was named the state stone of Michigan. (Thanks to Wikipedia!)

Petoskey stones resemble  Indonesian fossilized coral, which is found with beautiful warm colors of yellow, peach, pink, etc.
                               

1 comment:

  1. Gorgeous!!!!

    I didn't know you were a twin. Must have been fun even though you weren't identical.

    My mother told me to learn one new thing each and every day - you just saved my day.

    Jette

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