When my dad was very young--2nd grade or thereabouts--he went to school in a one-room school house and the teacher was his mom. At the end of the school year he and his 7 or so fellow students had their names engraved on small silver rectangles that were strung on a black velvet ribbon to make a bracelet. Whenever I have a job interview or other situation where I want to feel family love and professional competence, I'll wear it.

I also have a ring of mystery. After Mom died my sister and I divided her jewelry box. One of the things we found in it was a gold ring with a blue-green cabochon stone. The ring has some small jeweler marks on the inside. None of us remember Mom wearing it, ever. I wear it on days when I hope a stranger will pull me aside and whisper, "The Guild of the Tattered Wren meets by the river at twilight," or something like that.