ODE to Gemology

G. Robert Crowningshield

For over 60 years students of Gemology have struggled with spectrums; bewildered by birefringence, and simply plagued by pleochrosim. The following sonnet is guaranteed to bring a smile to your face, a glow to your heart, and a simple reminder that students of life and gemology re-discover natures gifts all over again, every day.

The following is reprinted with very minor edits from The Loupe, vol. V, No.2, Mar-Apr, 1953 p. 3.

Courtesy of the Richard T. Liddicoat Gemological Library

Dedicated to G. Robert Crowningshield, Bert Krashes, & Bill Jean

ODE to Gemology

By a GIA On-Campus Student

Dispersion, fire, aventurescence,

Orient, sheen, or iridescence—

Refractive index—high or low—

The luster should indicate that, you know.

Polarization—double or single—

What to do now! They intermingle!

Pleochroic colors you really should see;

Was that only two, or actually three?

Birefringence should help you a lot—

Use your polarizer, and watch the spot.

Now did it jump most, on low or on high?

Sure you can get it; if you really try.

Your liquids should be an aid, I think.

Does it float, suspend, or slowly sink?

Just use your imagination now—

(He doesn’t see me wiping my brow!)

Solid inclusions, or only bubbles?

Huh! They brush right off! I still got troubles—

Look for crystals and fingerprints—

Are the striae straight or are they bent?

You finally make your indentifications—

“You only missed one! Congratulations!

You’re doing fine! It’s just speed you lack!”

(I feel like using a well-placed tack.)

This scientific approach is tough

And you feel like shouting, “I’ve had enough!”

But, sooner or later, you see the light

And you know that this approach is right.

So to all who have helped us may we humbly say,

“Thank God, we had you to show us the way

To a life that is full of the things that are real—

And the appreciation you’ve taught us to feel

For the things which Nature so graciously gives—

You’ve given us something by which to live.”

“Anomalous”

Comments

A Mother’s Day Reflection

With Mother’s Day here and the world bustling with cards, brunches, and busy schedules, I find myself reflecting on something a bit simpler: taking a moment to remember the person who helped shape my earliest sense of home. Mauricette Elaine (Bontemps) Ball. My Mom. We arrived in Cuba after leaving La Rochelle, France, in 1959—a transition whose enormity I only fully appreciate now. My mother, barely in her mid-twenties, stepped into Midwestern life with remarkable courage. Her smile could warm the coldest Illinois morning, and her hugs lingered long after she let go—quiet reminders that you were deeply loved. Born February 16, 1934, the third of four children, she grew up in Nazi-occupied La Rochelle. As kids, we listened wide-eyed to stories of soldiers patrolling her streets and fear shadowing everyday life. Yet she carried none of that darkness forward. What endured was resilience and an unwavering devotion to family—qualities she carried across the Atlantic and planted firmly in C...

That Fateful Four-Letter Word

In this episode, A Masterclass in Efficiency. For nearly four months, the western border of our property has stood as a living monument to determination, dubious planning, and forensic-level lumber acquisition. Since February, our neighbor Steve has been conducting what can only be described as a masterclass in deliberate calculation. This was never going to be one of those slick home-improvement shows where a cheerful pair of men installs a fence between commercial breaks, sipping lemonade. No. This was real life in retirement. We scaled the vertical wilderness of our hillside. We mixed concrete with the precision of medieval alchemists. We bled, we sweated, and we fought hand-to-hand with a buried tree stump that had the structural integrity of a Cold War bunker. By this week—May 16th, for those keeping score—the glorious end was finally within reach. The fence stood proudly, the line was straight, and victory practically hummed in the air. Only one major task remained: installing t...

Truth for Sale

This episode is inspired by Elton John & Bernie Taupin On Memorial Day, I took my first bike ride since the accident , seeking proof that my legs, lungs, and nerves still remembered the road. The morning air carried that familiar Southern California mix of ocean haze, exhaust, eucalyptus, and sun-baked asphalt. My tires hummed across pavement I’ve ridden for years. Somewhere between the steady click of the chain and the rhythm of my breathing, Elton John and Bernie Taupin’s The Captain and the Kid found its way into my ears. There’s a strange kind of magic when the cadence of a ride syncs perfectly with a song you know by heart. Suddenly, the music and lyrics stop being background noise and become a lens. And through that lens, the road started talking. I've been cycling on this road some, Can't help feeling I've been showing my friends around. I've seen it grow from next to nothing, To a giant eatin’ up our town. Called up the tealeaves and the tarots, Asked the...

The Giants We Chase

In this episode, The Gleam Within We grow up steeped in fairy tales and grand mythologies. From a young age, we are taught to scan the horizon for the hero—the knight, the savior, the titan who will arrive to make sense of the world. We marvel at the mountains' beauty and nature's majesty, yet, as the old wisdom goes, "we pass over the mystery of ourselves without a single thought." I remember being the little guy from a small town in rural Illinois, looking up at the world and seeing only Giants. I would listen to Earl Nightingale’s Our Changing World broadcasts, mesmerized by the towering figures of success and intellect he described. When you feel small, you naturally seek out those Giants for a glimpse of their light—hoping some of it might rub off on you, preferably without having to do whatever it was they did to earn it. In 1985, while I was earning my G.G. credential, I met Richard T. Liddicoat, the Patriarch of GIA. To everyone in the industry, he was the Fat...

On The Fly

Search This Blog