As a young girl, I learned that not all engage­ments came with a ring. From the uncon­ven­tion­al watch my father used to pro­pose mar­riage to my moth­er to my own rocky romances – the too many rings I fell in love with and the too few men that could com­mit to a last­ing bond, this the sto­ry of my life from age five to fifty, as told through the jew­el­ry that I inher­it­ed, pur­chased for myself, and received (or didn’t receive) as gifts. Each chap­ter reveals a gem that evokes an inti­mate mem­o­ry — my mom’s post-divorce trans­for­ma­tion from Jack­ie O pearls to don­ning love beads to my grand­moth­er’s five and dime jew­el­ry, the sparkle of promis­ing new rela­tion­ships and the melt­downs of many breakups. Then when my moth­er unex­pect­ed­ly passed away, my life was for­ev­er changed. I not only lost my best friend, but also a big part of myself – the woman who taught me how to love, over­come obsta­cles and how to acces­sorize. In My Charmed Life, I con­nect my past and present by link­ing the jew­el­ry in my life, con­jur­ing up lost keep­sakes and fiery moments — until I real­ize that the bright­est gems are the ones you give your­self, and find free­dom I nev­er thought possible.