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Christi Diggs
on May 23 2013 - 06:00 AM
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With this ring, I thee…
Darin and I are still married--about 12 ½ years or so. But I don’t have the wedding ring he gave me in 2000.
I lost the ring in August 2012. I looked everywhere and there was no ring to be found. I called my insurance company, American Family, and they processed the claim efficiently. A check was sent to my home.
We pondered what to do. I didn’t go out and buy another identical ring with 20 princess-cut diamonds set in white gold.
We opted for less expensive rings (we decided to get matching ones). We also repaired some vehicles and dealt with some life stuff. You get the picture.
So here comes New Year’s weekend and we decided to move our bed and do some rearranging. Guess what I found under the headboard?
I won’t keep you in suspense. The ring.
I stared at it for a minute and originally had sinister thoughts. I’m confessing this. After all, insurance companies could expect on some loss in their investments, right? After seven seconds of considering insurance fraud and all of its benefits, I told Darin I would call the insurance company that Monday.
I called. The main response I kept getting was that the majority of people wouldn’t have made the call.
I had three main reasons for dialing that phone.
1) How could I love and serve Jesus and disappoint Him? I might as well sleep in on Sundays if that’s how I treat my relationship with God. My guilt would have been tremendous.
2) How could I talk to my girls about being honest, if I chose not be to honest? I didn’t want to spell hypocrite, C-H-R-I-S-T-I, any more than I already had to. Being good isn’t always my first instinct. (Just being honest. For folks who don’t know, Christians are just people who realize they need a savior because we can’t be perfect.)
3) I am a licensed insurance agent—not in property but that’s just wrong.
So, we had choices: a) send the check back; b) send 17 payments of $200 a month or c) send the ring back. We discussed it very briefly. After all, there was no check to return. We didn’t want to start resenting the ring because of the debt it represented. Sending the ring back made the most sense.
Some might read this and be mortified.
We sent the ring back. I received a letter this week with postage reimbursement from American Family and a comment from the claims adjuster. She appreciated our honesty and I felt even better about our decision.
I’ve had the misfortune of being around people wearing a ring that was on steroids when their marriages were a shambles. We know it’s not the ring that makes the marriage. I am grateful for my husband’s heart and effort to make this marriage work. When I think about it, I’d rather have a rock-solid marriage. That is invaluable and included a convenient pun!
For years I’ve heard the expression, “integrity is what you do when no one is looking.” But I haven’t often been tested to such a high degree. This time (contrasting my youthful behavior—non-criminal acts might I add) I’m actually playing for the right team.
I wish everyone the best the next time they’re faced with an ethical dilemma. Do what helps you sleep at night.
WOAH! You sent them your wedding ring? I think I'd send em payments instead. For us, our marriage is rock solid, but the ring is a symbol. He picked it out on his own, it's got sentimental value. Not only is our relationship priceless but so is my diamond. Shallow? Maybe, but my husband worked hard to pay for this sucker! :) Nice blog! WOW, I'm amazed.Congratulations Christi, I salute your honesty. Now your daughters have a great story to tell your grandchildren someday. May you have many more good nites sleep!Right on Christi. Those who would do that are few and far between. What an inspiration for those who know you. Peace be with you.I'm with tfjonas on this one. Several years ago I lost the diamond from my engagement ring. It was missing for several weeks. I was so distraught. I was just a tiny little rock but it was the rock that started our family. We never got to the part with an insurance claim as it was found--a miracle--but if we had, I would have wanted that ring back. We would have made payments. On the other hand, Yea! for you for teaching your children what character looks like. This was much more powerful than any speech you could give them.
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