Woman’s Weekly New Zealand – September 02, 2019

S

pringis uponus– in

theory.Thedaysare

gettinglonger,thesunis

shininga littlebrighterandthe

lambswillbespringingaround

thepaddocksbeforeweknow

it. Plus,gorgeousdaffodilswill

soonbeemergingfromthe

ground.Mymumanddad’s

birthdaysarein lateAugust

andSeptember,respectively.

They’renolongerheresadly,

butit’spoignantformethat

theirbirthdaysareat thistime

ofyear.I cantakea spring

flowerortwototheplaces

theirashesare.Mumloved

gardeningandwasa sunny,

practicalperson,soit seems

aptthatspringbloomsare

aroundforherbirthday.Dad

wastheediblegardeningsort,

growinga bumpercropof

vegestillthedayhedied.

Spring– it’sa greattimefor

gardeners,andin factforall

ofusaswewelcomea new

seasonandwhateverit brings.

NEW

ABOU

THECHANGE

OFA SEASON

WSTA R TS

UND WITH

CHANGE

Springing

to life

62 New Zealand Woman’s Weekly

Doyouhaveaproblem

you’dlikeJudeto

weighinon?

Sendyourquestions

tonzww@

bauermedia.co.nz

with‘HeyJude’

inthesubjectline,

ortoHey

Jude,NZWW,Bauer

Media,

PrivateBag92512,

Wellesley

Street,Auckland

1141.

ASK JUDE!

DearJude,

I hopeyoudon’tmind

me asking,but I read an

interview with you in the

Weekly where you spoke

about having your mother’s

ashes turned into a diamond.

It sounds incredible although

I’ve never heard of such a

thing. If you don’t mind me

prying, would you be able

to tell me more about it? I

have been speaking to my

parents lately about what

will happen in their afterlife.

None of us seem too happy

with our options, but this

sounds beautiful.

Regards, Katie

You’re not prying at all. I’m

most happy to share the info

as it was something I too was

not aware of until a friend

mentioned it a few weeks

after Mum died. She had

heard of someone who had

done it and they were very

happy with the result. A quick

googleatherkitchenbench

tookusthere.Thewebsite

is calledHeartin Diamond

(heart-in-diamond.co.nz). After

a surf through its contents, I

wanted to meet someone and

talk about it. I did, and that

was the point at which I said

yes. ‘Dust to diamonds’ is the

principle, and when you think

about it, we are made from

carbon, hence with a bit of

pressure applied we make a

lovely diamond! So do our pets.

You can also use hair if that’s

what you’d prefer. You’ll need

0.5-2 grams of hair or 100 grams

of ashes (half a cup) and your

funeral director can help you

here if you want. While some

people might think this

macabre, for me it’s a complete

joy to have my mother with me

24/7. Once the diamond was

made, I had a setting created

by a Kiwi jeweller, in the same

style as her 1950s rings. I wear

this particular ring at the base of

my finger (closest to my heart)

and it sits well with Mum’s other

rings I wear, which she wore for

almost 60 years. Into a new

decade they go, worn by

another generation. You can

get diamonds in all kinds of

different cuts and styles, colours

and sizes, and depending on

what you want, the process

takes between 70 to 120 days,

with progress reports along the

way. I truly love the ring and

see it as creating an heirloom.

Jude Dobson

ADVICE

Buddingjoys!

Thestart of spring, for
me,symbolises new life,
andmy mum and dad.
Perhaps it’s something
to do with the blooms
thatflourish. No matter what, I
findmyself looking forward to
whatmay come.

heyJUDE...

th t fl

d l h k h b h

READER LETTER OF THE WEEK