Learning to Dig Rocks

 M. Woodhouse

“The girls can flirt and other queer things can do.” That declaration from Mrs. Crompton, teaching my classmates and me in her eighth grade science class a handy mnemonic for the Mohs Hardness Scale*, marked the beginning of my education in mineralogy. For a long time, it also marked the end. 
           Unlike many MMS members whose stories I’ve heard about their interest in the subject, I did not have a lifelong passion for rocks. Oh, sure, I visited the mineral gallery in the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History during my sixth grade safety patrol’s visit to Washington, D.C., but that entailed a few minutes of oohing and aahing over the Hope Diamond before I dashed off to another “more interesting” area in the museum. For most of my life, my scientific curiosity has been focused primarily on living things of any and every kind. My main rock-related interest was whether you could dance to it.
           This all started to change when my husband, Mike, started collecting minerals, beginning with a few specimens from his father’s collection. (Those that his mother didn’t toss or give away when her husband died, a sad fate that even a non-aficionado could appreciate.) As Mike started to purchase specimens to grow his collection, I became his aesthetic adviser, as in, “Oh, that one’s pretty!” In the beginning, I told Mike that he was free to collect any mineral he wanted, so long as it ended in -ite. After all, we needed to put some boundaries on our purchases from whatever rock shop we happened upon during our travels. It wasn’t long, however, before that rule went by the wayside. Who doesn’t love a beautiful turquoise or opal? Further, not all the specimens we acquired are particularly stunning, but how could we not have a woodhouseite, followed quickly by a margarite?
           As you may have noticed, it is now WE who are collecting, and not just through purchases. After many years of attending the Detroit gem and mineral show, and picking up a membership application form more than once, Mike became a member of MMS in 2017. I joined the following year, mostly so that I could join him on club field trips. Still not being gung-ho on rocks, my main interest was in the companionship and just being outdoors. Over time, however, I found myself enjoying other aspects of being a member of MMS.

            I’ll start with the presentations at the monthly meetings. Initially, the speakers covered topics and used terms that were completely foreign to me. I thought of it as mineral-ese. But I’m pretty good at languages and have a solid base in chemistry and other sciences, so eventually, I began to get it. Plus, the other members, in their enthusiasm for their hobby, have been willing to provide explanations for as long as I’m willing to listen. 
           Regarding my original reason for joining, the field trips, I started out as green as they come, not knowing how to even begin. Early on, Jim Stoner advised me to go for the dark rock in the quarry, because it’s a lot softer than the light rock and therefore easier to obtain specimens from. Since then, I have experienced the elation of finding and extracting a nice specimen and shared in the happiness of others who make great finds. (It seems as though competitiveness doesn’t exist on the field trips; we’re all glad for each other’s success. That attitude changes somewhat during the mineral auctions!) Even recognizing that you’re never going to be able to get that gorgeous crystal out of that rock leads to an acceptance and gratitude that you were able to witness its beauty. I suppose it is only fitting that what led me to join MMS is the area that I have chosen to focus on as a volunteer. I now assist Jim in coordinating the field trips, and try to make sure that other participants have a great experience. 
           This spring, Mike and I made another visit to Washington, D.C., and to the Museum of Natural History. We arrived shortly after the doors opened and headed straight to the mineral collection. The Hope Diamond is still magnificent, and we duly admired it, but we spent a couple of hours reveling in the other amazing specimens before taking a quick lunch break, and then heading back to see the rest of their mineral displays. It was wonderful!
           I don’t expect that I’ll ever be fluent in mineral-ese, and I remain much more adept in identifying birds or wildflowers than in identifying minerals, including some in our own collection, but I have certainly gained a deeper understanding and appreciation of all things rock-related. If only Mrs. Crompton knew what she started. 

* Mohs Hardness Scale: 1 = talc; 2 = gypsum; 3 =calcite; 4 = fluorite; 5 = apatite; 6 = orthoclase; 7 = quartz; 8 = topaz; 9 = corundum; 10 = diamond