Page 122 of The Moment We Know

She picked up the dark purple one he’d set on the table. “This is amethyst,” she said, then pointed to one of her rings with a similar, though much smaller, stone. “It’s one of my favorite crystals. It helps relieve stress.”

Lauren picked up a mossy green stone which matched another of her rings. “This is aventurine. It helps with luck.”

“You have a lot of rings.”

She chuckled. “I do. And I wear different rings every day, depending on what extra powers I think I might need.”

Jacob pointed to a pink crystal. “What’s that one?”

“It’s rose quartz. It helps with love and peace.”

“What’s this?” He pointed to a brown crystal with streaks of tan and cream in it.

“That’s a tiger’s eye. It helps protect you.”

He looked over his assembly of stones and then picked up a light blue one. “What’s this?”

“That’s aquamarine. It’s known for its calming powers, among other things,” she answered, then used her thumb and forefinger to lift a matching stone hanging from a black cord around her neck. “I actually wear this crystal every day.”

“Does it work?”

“Yes, it does.”

She let the pendant settle back into place, and then began putting all the crystals back in the bowl, and Jacob watched, disappointed. When she was done, she pushed the bowl toward him even more. “How would you like to pick a crystal of your very own? To keep, so that you can use its power to help make you healthy and strong?”

He nodded enthusiastically and reached into the bowl, his fingers going for a bright blue one.

With a gentle touch, she stopped him from taking it by placing her hands over his, then met his confused look with a smile. “You always have to pick the first one with your eyes closed.”

“Why?”

“Because that way, you pick the one you need, not the one you think you want.”

Not entirely sure what the difference was, Jacob pursed his mouth for a moment before reluctantly closing his eyes, hoping that the blue crystal would be the one he needed, since he really wanted it.

Lauren moved his fingers down into the bowl, helping him mix the polished stones around and filling the air with the rumble of rock against rock, and the clink of rock against glass. “It’s important to touch them, and hold them,” she instructed softly, before pulling her hands away and letting him take over. “There’s no rush, so take as much time as you want. You’ll know it when you feel it.”

Even though he really wasn’t sure this was going to work, Jacob kept his eyes tightly shut and followed Lauren’s instructions. He touched and held rock after rock, going through what felt like the entire bowl before he picked up one that made him pause. Oddly shaped and slightly warmer than the other stones, it was also not as heavy, and his heart began to race with excitement as he pictured the blue one in all its bright glory.

“Looks like you found it,” Lauren murmured. “Open your eyes.”

Jacob slowly raised his eyelids and stared down at the crystal … only to feel like he’d been dealt a crushing blow as he realized the crystal he’d chosen was nothing but an ugly, black rock.

“I can tell you’re disappointed, but I know you’re going to change your mind and really like it, once I tell you all about this awesome crystal,” she told him, taking it out of his hand. “It’s obsidian, one of the coolest crystals out there, and is actually made from volcanoes.”

At that, Jacob raised his eyes. “It is?”

Lauren nodded. “Do you know what volcanoes do?”

It was his turn to nod. He’d seen a show on TV about volcanoes not too long ago. “They blow up and then red, hot stuff shoots out all over the place.”

“Yes, that’s more or less true,” she said with a soft chuckle at his description. “And the hot stuff that comes out is called lava, which cools off and becomes this …” she trailed off as she held the crystal up. “Volcanic glass.”

“Volcanic glass?”

“That’s right. And you know what else?”

“What?”

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