Tiny Tuesday - Mineral/Crystal

This morning was taken up with our house group, lively and thought-provoking as ever.

After lunch I phoned the solicitors who did Mum’s probate application to see if there was any progress with putting the bungalow into my name at Land Registry, and winding up the trust it’s still currently held in. Worryingly it seems there hasn’t been any progress at all. A reply I emailed to them a month ago with answers to a couple of questions doesn’t appear to have reached them, or at the very least wasn’t registered on their electronic system for action. I’ve re-sent it, and hope things will now start happening, though the specialist solicitor who deals with trusts is on holiday for the next two weeks so it’s not looking good. After 18 months of endless legalities to wade through I’ve just about had my fill of solicitors, to be honest. Think I’ll try and go elsewhere to make a new will.

Thank you to McCaviti for hosting the Tiny Tuesday challenge in September, with this week’s theme of mineral/crystal. This cross is made from silver and a stone called Blue John. It’s a rare natural variety of calcium fluorite, and the only known deposit of this unusual mineral is in a hill to the west of Castleton in Derbyshire, England, opposite the ‘Mam Tor’ or Shivering Mountain. The Romans discovered Blue John nearly two thousand years ago during their occupation of Britain. After that, it was not in favour again until the late 18th century, when there were still sufficient quantities mined to create French-style neo-classical vases, urns and ornaments. Today the mines are largely extinct, but smaller veins of the stone still provide enough of it to set into jewellery. Blue John is believed to possess strong healing powers, absorbing stress and boosting the immune system and self-confidence.