On the Tuesday before Christmas I went up to Bismarck (about 70 miles from my parents' house) with my sister Ronda and my dad. My dad had several errands to do, so he dropped Ronda, Livia and me off by the front doors of Walmart. A few moments before then, I had noticed how dry and cracked my hands were. While still in the car I took my rings off to put lotion on... and forgot that they were still in my lap. When I got out of the car at Walmart, they fell off my lap onto the snow-covered sidewalk. About 2 hours later, as we were checking out, I looked at my hands and thought it strange that I had forgotten my rings at home... until I remembered that they were not at home. I prayed on my way outside and then to the car that I would see them and everything would be ok. I searched and searched with no luck. I went to Customer Service and burst into tears as I asked if some rings had been turned in. I truly began to fear that I would never see them again. I tried not to cry. I tried to remind myself that they were just 'things' but it still broke my heart that my carelessness had cost me some of my most precious material things. My dad helped me search as Ronda took care of Livia for me. We talked with the security team, and I begged (I mean that literally) them to let me watch the surveillance video for the past couple of hours. They refused, but said they would view them and let me know if they saw anything... they weren't much help. I left feeling a little hopeless and knowing that I might have to accept that they were gone. I did at most times have a feeling of peace that it would all turn out... but I didn't know if that would mean that I would get them back, or that I would truly accept what happened. (I hoped it meant the first!) I filed a police report and they said they would do what they could.
The police were in contact with me, but they never had good news. I called Walmart several times, and they too had no good news.
On Friday, my dad suggested that we go back to Bismarck and visit all the local pawn shops. We called them all, and most were helpful in letting me know if any rings had been brought in that fit my description. One was not so cordial, and said I would need to be there in person if I didn't want him to think I was the criminal trying to pawn a ring I stole from my Grandma. (That made me cry even more.)
On the way there, my dad calls and tells me to call someone named Maria from KFYR, a local news and radio station. He had called them to see if we could talk about it on the radio and Maria said she would like to do a story about it. I was so grateful to be given the opportunity to get more information out there, with the hopes that there are still good and honest people out there. So I called Maria and set up a time with her to interview me. Jason and I planned to go to Walmart to buy a metal detector and search the area again, so we met Maria and the camera lady there. I honestly didn't have much hope, even with being on the news. I thought the chances were slim that the one person who picked them up would be watching the news. But I knew I still had to at least try.
After the interview, we went to buy a metal detector and Jason scanned the area several times, but again we had no luck. It was getting dark, and we had run out of ideas of what more we could do, so we left to go home. I got a little teary-eyed as I told myself that I need to forgive myself and be ok with it and remember that it was just 'stuff' that I had lost. Jason took my hand and told me that we did everything in our power, that we did everything we could.
Within five minutes of saying that, Jason's phone rang. It was my sister Jill asking if we were still in Bismarck. We said we were just a few minutes away from getting on the interstate to come home. She told us to turn around because the rings had been found! At first Jason thought it was just a really mean joke, then he realized she was telling the truth. A man that had seen the news remembered an ad in the newspaper about rings being found in the Walmart parking lot. He gave the information to my dad and my dad called and described the rings to the woman who had put the ad in the paper. She was almost as happy as my dad when he told her the inscription and it matched! He gave me the address and we made a stop to get cash for the reward we offered and went to get them.She was a sweet little lady who desperately wanted to find the rightful owner. She was going to call all the jewelers in the area to see if they had done the inscription. (And of course, since it's North Dakota, she knew one of my uncles!)
I know it was the Lord's hand in it being a good and honest person that found them. I believe that most people would try to find the owner, but you never know who would be the one to pick them up.
I was very much a faith promoting experience for both of us. I feel that because we did everything we could, AND accepted whatever would result, that our faith was strengthened and our testimony of prayer has been reaffirmed. Along with that, I am reminded that there are still good and honest people out there. She refused the reward, and she had put the ad in the newspaper right away, so I know her intentions were to find the rightful owner from the very beginning.
I would also suggest to anyone that has jewelry or anything like it of value, to take some pictures of it, so if it were to get lost, you would have a picture of what it looks like to show others.
