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Recently
while out riding my four wheeler with my wife I spotted an
old home site resting right on top of a nice sized hill with
a cistern setting there beside some trees. My dear wife of
22 years and I were riding through some of the most
beautiful woods in East Texas when I spotted the site while
just enjoying the fall foliage and the colors that were
nothing short of spectacular this fall. There was plenty of
sunshine and just enough chill in the air to make it nippy.
I sat there looking at what had to be a homeplace of over a
hundred years old and wondered what treasures might just be
under the cover of the ground.
The next day brought rain and
it was just enough to wash me out at work so off I went in
search of the land owners name and number so as to gain
permission to hunt. After stopping at two of the houses in
the area I found that the land belonged to Mr. and Mrs. Riza
of Troup TX. I also learned that Mr.Riza enjoyed his privacy
and it was said that he was a stern fellow and that I would
get shot if I didn't get permission first. I called
information and got his number and then called him from the
truck while sitting at his gate. I explained to him what I
wanted, a little nervously at first and he told me to go
ahead and hunt. It seemed that he actually lives right on
the place only further in back. He told me that he was
having lunch and to help myself but not to leave until he
got up to the gate to see me. I readily agreed and gathered
my gear for the search.
I climbed over the gate and
began to hunt and had just really got warmed up good when
Mr. Riza came driving up in his truck and got out. I turned
the machine off and walked up expecting to meet a bear of a
fellow. He got out of his truck and we shook hands and began
to visit. I explained that I was primarily a relic hunter
but also liked to hunt old home places as time allowed and
we began to visit and talk about the civil war. It seems
that he too was a son of a Confederate veteran and a kinder
man I have yet to meet in all my 42 years on Gods green
earth. I always carry a couple of old coins and relics in my
pocket to show folks what I like to hunt for and that day I
had a silver Barber dime and a Company B letter designation
that I had found in Louisiana the weekend before. He looked
at the items and just couldn't believe that this small piece
of brass had actually come from the Civil War. He gently
handed me the little B designation and I put it back in my
pocket and our friendly visit continued.
It didn't take long to realize
that this fellow was as passionate as I was about the Civil
War and I reached back into my pocket and found that Company
letter and handed it over to him. I asked him if he would
like to have it and he told me that I couldn't have given it
to anybody who would treasure it more. I handed it to him
for his hospitality in letting me hunt on his property and
felt that I had just made a new friend for life. We talked
another thirty minutes or so and then he mentioned to me
that he had lost his wedding ring a year ago almost to the
day. I glanced down at this gentleman's hands and thought
man that ring must be the size of a Frisbee. Mr. Riza is a
very stocky fellow and his hands were very large as well.
The kind man asked me if there was any way that I might have
time to help him look for his ring and I told him that I
would make time to help. We both jumped in our trucks and
headed towards the back of one of the most beautiful valleys
I have ever seen. As the trucks came to a stop at his back
property line he got out and explained that this area was
one of the places that he may have lost his ring and I got
out with my Minelab Sovereign and began to search. We
stopped 3 times to search various areas and hadn't found his
ring yet. He then took me into his corral and pointed out an
area where he had worked the day he lost the ring that meant
so much to him. I got out again and began to search all
along the bottom of a wooden fence that he had constructed
which butted up to a couple of steel panels that made up
another part of the fence. He heard the steel panels giving
me a fit and said that he would tear down that portion of
the fence so I could check under it as well. I told him to
go ahead and I would start out n the middle of the corral.
He began taking the steel
panels down and I walked out to the middle of the corral and
started swinging the Sovereign. I didn't swing that machine
more than 3 times when a beautiful full signal was heard in
my headset. I shouted over to my new friend to wait on
taking down the fence and so he stopped to watch me dig this
new target. I gently dug down about four inches and popped
out the biggest mans gold diamond ring that I have ever
seen. I gently removed the dirt and manure from it and stood
up with his ring in the palm of my hand holding it out for
him to see.
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He walked over to me
and looked down at the ring and then back up at me
and then down at the ring again. He looked up with
tears streaming down his face and hugged my neck.
The gentleman had been married for 55 years when his
wife passed and all that time had never had a
wedding ring of his own. When he remarried a couple
of years ago his new wife had given him this
gorgeous 2000 dollar wedding ring and he cherished
it. He had only worn it for a year when it was lost
and it had been lost as previously stated for almost
exactly a year. |
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Well when this 77 year old
gentleman looked up at me with tears streaming down his face
I couldn't help but wipe a few tears away myself. He told me
to come on up to the house and give this to his wife and I
readily agreed. When we pulled up to the farm house she came
outside and Mr. Riza introduced me to her. I told her who I
was and what my hobby was and then held the ring out for her
to see. When she saw the lost ring tears began streaming
down her face as well. Folks we are involved in the greatest
hobby in the world without a doubt. I have experienced the
returning of a ring to its rightful owner before but it
didn't compare to what turned out to be my greatest find of
all. A new friend for life. We talked for a while about how
the good Lord must have had me come by there to help in
locating the lost ring and it was a hunt I will remember
always. I still haven't hunted the home place spot yet but
will finish as soon as I have time. The greatest treasure of
all has just got to be the friends that we all make along
the way. I pray you all will be as fortunate as I have been
and that you are successful in your search for Treasure.
Remember to treasure your friends and happy hunting.
----Rick Mc Donald
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