One of the most rewarding adventures of my business year is our annual trek to the Franklin Gem and Mineral Show, a huge wholesale event held in the tiny town of Franklin, North Carolina (that’s way down in the pointy western end of the state.) The Franklin area is naturally rich in gems and minerals, and rockhounds have been drawn there for generations. This particular show, although not quite so mammoth as the month-long one held in Tucson every spring, is one of the largest east of the Mississippi. In addition to a half-mile long strip of outdoor sales tents housing individual vendors, there’s also a main exhibition tent about the size of a football field housing several hundred more vendors.

Imagine such a space filled with literally millions of dollars in glittering gemstones: diamonds, rubies, sapphire and emeralds as well as many other less common varieties. There are stone, glass and metal beads in every color of the rainbow, booths offering all sorts of gold, silver and platinum chains, components and findings, stone carvings and raw mineral specimens, gemstone rough for lapidaries interested in cutting and polishing their own stones, and cabochons of semi-precious materials like turquoise, deep blue lapis lazuli and tomato red carnelian. One can find pearls of every shape, size and color, enormous geodes five feet tall filled with amethyst crystals, antique ethnic jewelry and textiles… the list goes on and on.

As one might well imagine, the experience can be quite overwhelming, and the show evokes images of a dragon or pirate horde. Over the years, I’ve cultivated strong friendships with specific dealers to whom I return, knowing they will have the types of loose stones and supplies I am seeking at a fair price. I look forward to discovering new gem materials that have entered the marketplace and to seeing what the new ‘hot’ stones and bead shapes are for the coming season.

But as fascinating as the heaps of ‘treasure’ are, it is the community of dealers and buyers that fascinate me the most. Along an aisle, you will find dealers from India, China, Mexico, Australia, Bulgaria, Morocco, Thailand, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Chile, Indonesia, Burma and the good old USA, all chattering away in their home tongues (all speak some English, too) and many eating their traditional foods. I’ve been fed chipatis stuffed with vegetable curry by my dear friend Tanny while I selected sapphires, offered roast goat by a Moroccan dealer as I sorted through bins of fossils and once a Pakistani vendor specializing in antique carpets sang me a traditional love song because I asked him about the lovely tune he was humming.

We’ll return to TwoTrees late Friday evening with bags of gems and beads and findings – raw materials for me to create the coming year’s stock. But we also return with a far greater treasure – the realization that people of all ethnicities, faiths and heritages can come together into a joyful, productive community. Now that’s a gem beyond all price!