Many years ago, I found a stone among my possessions. I don’t remember ever finding the stone. I don’t remember anyone gifting me the stone. I have a vague feeling it may have something to do with my sister, but then I always feel that way.

Anyway, the stone is about 3/4″ in diameter, black with raised, jagged markings that look like glyphs of some sort, but not really. I thought it could be fossilized something or other, but that thought never felt right. It is much heavier than it should be — it feels like iron. No one I’ve shown it to over the years has been able to tell me what it is.

So tonight, I had my first appointment with an acupuncture / plant spirit medicine healer to try and address the chronic, recurring problems I’ve been having with ear infections and bad back pain. I left work, worried that there wasn’t enough time what with rush hour traffic to get to his place in Manayunk by 5pm. The radio said traffic was backed up on 76 from 202 to Girard Avenue. Strangely, I made it to Manayunk in 15 minutes with 45 to spare before the appointment. So, I decided to take a walk and see what was around. I walked about a half mile or so and then turned around and walked back.

Manayunk is definitely a cool place to shop (if one is into shopping). I think I could almost enjoy xmas shopping there….very unmall-like, but expensively trendy. Anyway, when I was a half block from the office, I decided to duck into a crystal shop to waste my last 15 minutes.

The shop was long and very narrow, more like a hallway than a store. There was a young black man in ethnic garb behind the counter, which was barely more than a glass fronted desk. He was talking on the phone when I walked in and continued his conversation while I perused his rock collection.

Amongst the sizable, shiny crystal offerings was a plain rush basket full of dull stones. They were gravelly looking, round rocks that stopped me in my tracks. I picked one up. It was too heavy and felt like iron, and I thought of my rock. I held one out to the man and asked what it was. He got off the phone and said, those are shaman stones. They call them moqui marbles. I described my rock to him and he said, “You have a boji stone. They are rarer than moqui marbles. You are very lucky.”

When I got home, I googled “shaman stones” and found examples of my rock.

I am indeed very lucky.

take a look: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boji_stone