EDITOR’S LETTER

Iam excited to be named as the new editor of Rock & Gem and am honored by this opportunity to guide this wonderful magazine into its next 50 years. I could spend this letter giving you all my credentials for this job, but that’s really no fun. Instead, I’d like to share my own Show and Tell like you’ll find on pages 24

-25 of this issue.

Over the summer, I spent a day with my family on

South Bass Island just off the shores of Lake Erie. The island is best known for the town of Put-In-Bay, an ideal place for leisurely exploring via golf cart. Just down the road from main street is Heineman’s Winery. Wineries are fun to visit, but usually not of geological significance.

Heineman’s though is different. It’s a winery that survived prohibition and thrives today, in part, because it’s sitting on top of the world’s largest geode - a tourist attraction that people will pay money to see and kept the coffers flowing when the wine couldn’t.

I’ve cracked open a few geodes in my time but standing inside of one seemed more like a fantasy than reality until that day. Let’s just say our golf cart made a beeline into the winery when I saw the road signs and we quickly snagged tour tickets. I almost balked at the steep steps we were told to climb down, but I couldn’t be a wimp and hold up the rest of the line, so down I went into the geode, and I’m glad I did!

The walls of the geode are covered in large blueish gray celestine crystals that vary in size with the biggest being about three feet wide. Celestite is a mineral made of strontium sulfate and the crystals are used in making fireworks.

Metaphysically, celestite is known for its calming effect, for providing mental clarity and helping open people to new experiences. Maybe it was a trick of the mind, but I was calm and happy standing in that geode and breathing the cool moist air. I couldn’t resist snapping a few pictures but had to resist touching the crystals as that’s not allowed.

Shortly after my trip to the geode, I was presented with the opportunity to edit Rock & Gem. It may be a weird metaphysical twist of fate or a bit of luck that a summer rock adventure led to a rock-filled job! Pam Freeman

Editor