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Living Promises

By Diamond Mike Watson.

I created the Living Promises pendant and its verses for a user to summon any positive virtue. Forged in precious metal, the Living Promises pendant renders its charm with positive thought.

The inspiration of the design came from a sketch my adoptive mother, Martha, drew when he I was a child.  She admitted stumbling onto the pattern years before as she was doodling with pencil and paper.  She made a square graph of dots and connected them into the shape of a stylized cross.  Martha then embellished the negative spaces. 

The contour shone with beautiful symmetry and invincibility. 

Martha prepared another graph and taught the skill to me, her only adopted child.  The result was a magical eight-armed symbol that forever sparked my imagination. 

Throughout the years, I found myself scrawling the image.  Because of my love for my mother, I associated all goodness within this enchanting symbol.  

During the following years, a deeper meaning arose from the drawing.  Since ancient times, humans have been fascinated with the virtual indestructibility of a diamond, which in its natural state grows for hundreds of millions of years into an eight-sided crystal called an octahedron. Being in the diamond business, it was easy for me to compare the mesmerizing eight arms to the faces of a fine rough diamond. 

I divided the components of the symbol into the virtues my mother taught me as a child. 

Each arm represents a virtue, or a promise that the owner agrees to keep. 

Watson’s illustration of his mother’s original sketch.

The Living Promises:

In general, the promises of the pendant become more abstract as one moves clockwise around its arms.  The first promises stem from our basic principles to get along with others.  The last two arms are deeper in concept. 

  1. Be kind.
  2. Be giving.
  3. Be forgiving.
  4. Be thankful.
  5. Be joyful.
  6. Be brave.
  7. Be mindful.
  8. Be knowing.


I could never arrange any virtue by importance because a virtue may be needed more at different times in one’s life.   Since I was rarely satisfied in the concept of ultimate truth, I loosely defined it.  I believed truth was a concept that was personal and relevant only to the individual.  This is easy to understand when comparing persons who are born from different parts of the globe and into different conditions and circumstances.  Because individual truth is important the virtue is blended into the higher levels of the pendant. 

In choosing the virtues, I used those which I felt had the broadest meaning.  Sometimes a virtue seems to stand alone and sometimes it may accompany another. 

For example, a person may need courage (bravery) to be honest and truthful.  If this is true, the virtues of courage, honesty, and truthfulness can share a single arm. 

Hearts and Angels Pendant shown with garnet.

However, being thankful may not mean one is generous.  Also, a person who is aware may not be kind.  Since these are unrelated virtues they must be found on separate arms. 

The difference between Be Mindful and Be Knowing.

At first it may be difficult to understand the difference between the seventh and eighth arms of the pendant. 

Although the words “mindful” and “know” can sometimes be used interchangeably, the Living Promises gives clarity to their individual meanings. 

Mindful is an adjective.  When you are mindful or aware you are a spectator. 

To be mindful means to be conscious or aware of objects, thoughts and emotions.  It does not necessarily mean one has a deep understanding. 

Know is a verb meaning to confess as true.  It comes from the word knowledge and refers to in-depth understanding. 

This word allows us to take action based on our perception of truth. 

Be mindful and Be knowing are the last arms of the Living Promises in which I wove my concept of personal truth. 

How the pendant was named. 

Since the pendant had eight sides I called it an Octalet.  “Octa” in Latin means eight and “let” comes from the word amulet. 

Because I knew it would aid the user before going to sleep I also called it a Dreamlet and a Dream Maker.  After the first draft was cast in silver I realized it was more of a talisman, which is an object that attracts positivity.  

Whatever name one gives to the pendant, it must be known that without positive thoughts the Living Promises is powerless. 

A “Living” Talisman

The Living Promises mirrors the needs of its owner. 

Because I understood virtues could be interpreted in different ways throughout one’s life, I stressed not to cling tightly to any definition.  Throughout my own life I have assigned different levels of importance to each promise. 

The promises assigned to each arm may not contain the one needed for every moment.  Therefore, the Living Promises should be considered a “living” talisman which can be transformed at any moment to benefit the needs of the user. 

It must be known that each promise reflects my personal philosophy at the time of this writing.   Since I believed that one person’s truth may not be another’s, I also  believed any definition may change or become more or less significant throughout time. Therefore, the user is encouraged to modify any promise to reflect their present understanding of their life’s purpose. 

Love.  (The source of all virtues.)

One may consider Love is the center of the Living Promises. It may be the origin of all virtues.  Knowing we are loved shapes us into who we are.  Only when we know we are loved can we love ourselves.  When we love ourselves, it is easy to love others. When we love others, our world becomes our beautiful home.

The Living Promises

1. Be Kind. Love yourself.  Love others.  Recognize your reflection in others.  Treat all that lives with compassion.

2. Be Giving. Give cheerfully without expecting anything in return. Your smile or a kind word can be the greatest gift.  Take what you need- Give more than you take.

3. Be Forgiving. Ask for forgiveness when you harm another.  Forgive others who harm you and even those who do not ask for forgiveness.

4. Be Thankful. Have immense gratitude for all things. Be thankful for your dwelling, your body, and your senses.  Be thankful even for your suffering and shortcomings which strengthen you. 

5.  Be Joyful. Smile, laugh and find great joy in all things.

Do not worry.

Be joyful for the sunshine of morning, the darkness of night, and everything between.

Seek joy within yourself and you will find joy in everything else.

6. Be Brave.  Walk with courage.  Live without fear.  Speak your truth.  Grow in wisdom and understanding.

Wake with excitement in being the master of your reality. 

Do your best. The world needs you today.

7. Be Mindful.  Be aware of this moment.  It is here you hold our galaxy with its family of stars in your mind and realize you are the light within it.

Be mindful the moon may evoke awe in one person yet loneliness in another.  We each experience life differently. Your truth may not be another’s truth.

8. Be Knowing. Know you are loved.  Know you are a living masterpiece.

Know your words and thoughts can encourage, inspire and heal.

Know all things are possible.  Know life gives you every success with perseverance and good intention.  

The amazing thing about every day is you create it along the way.  Although the pages of your past have been written, know you can write each new page with whatever you desire. 

Star Guide Living Promises pendant.

How to use the pendant.

The Living Promises can be used anytime yet the best time is when one can dedicate a quiet moment of reflection or before falling asleep. 

Some believe dreams hold the power to solve perceived problems in waking life.  By carrying positive thoughts into one’s dreams, one may awaken with renewed purpose.  Using the Living Promises at night is a wonderful way to fall asleep.

One may first memorize each arm.  It is a good idea to read through the definitions of each promise, feeling free to add or modify a thought beside a particular promise that has a current or special meaning to the user. 

Moon Glow Living Promises pendant.

Before sleeping, one may simply think about or touch the promise of Kindness on the top right arm.  Then one can move clockwise around the pendant with your thoughts or by touching the metal, silently repeating the name of each promise while giving deep thought to its meaning.  One may think of each arm as a door to understanding each promise. The user may spend as much or as little time contemplating each promise and how it is currently relevant in one’s life.

An easy way to use the Living Promises is to simply trace your finger along each arm and silently repeat each promise. If you wish, you can repeat the name of each arm in first person.

I am kind. 
I am giving.
I am forgiving.
I am thankful.
I am joyful.
I am brave.
I am mindful.
I an knowing.

Other Virtues

Hearts and Angels Living Promises pendant shown with amethyst.

Following is a list of other virtues that may be needed in one’s life.  Depending on what virtue the user is seeking, any of these can be assigned to one of the arms:

  1. Docility: Willingness to be taught, to learn, and to grow.  Being open to new ideas and gaining knowledge. 
  2. Good counsel: Seeking advice from a reasonable person one can trust to have our best interest at heart. 
  3. Good judgment: Thinking rightly about a decision. 
  4. Greatness: Seeking to accomplish excellent and superb feats that will benefit ourselves and others. 
  5. Humility: Freedom from pride or arrogance.  Being humble. 
  6. Leadership. To have a commanding authority or influence. 
  7. Meekness: Being modest, humble. Having a serenity of spirit while focusing on the needs of others. 
  8. Moderation. To avoid extremes of behavior or expression. To observe reasonable limits. 
  9. Patience: The ability to accept delay or suffering without getting upset. 
  10. Perseverance: The continued effort to achieve something despite difficulties or failure. To overcome the temptation to quit.
  11. Respect: Recognizing the worth and dignity of others. 
  12. Responsibility: Fulfilling one’s duties and accepting the consequences of one’s words and actions. 
  13. Self-control: Restraint over one’s impulses, emotions, or desires. 
  14. Sincerity: Trustfulness and honesty in words and actions. 
  15. Tolerance: Allowing others to have opinions that are different from ours. 
  16. Wisdom:  The ability to determine right from wrong. 

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Living Promises for Kids. 

The Living Promises is a great gift for kids and young adults to remember good virtues throughout their lives. It provides a precious moment for parent and child communication.  Words can have different meanings depending how they are spoken or read.  Depending on the age of the child, a parent may discuss a single virtue or all of them. 

Following is an abbreviated version of the Living Promises that kids can understand. 

1.  Be kind.  This is caring.  It is treating others as you would like them to treat yourself. 

2.  Be giving.  Giving and sharing with our family and friends.  Sometimes even our smile can be a great gift to someone.

3.   Be forgiving.  When we hurt others we must say we are sorry. We must forgive at all times and when we say we are sorry it must come from our heart.

Back side of the Fountains Living Promises
pendant showing Diamond Mike hallmark.

4. Be thankful. This is the appreciation of everything.  We can be thankful for our home, our food, our mother and father and everyone we love. 

5. Be joyful.  This is happiness and comes from thoughts of love in our hearts.  Joy can come from everywhere- from laughter, sunshine, the patter of rain, our friends, or from the hug of our mother or father.  

6.  Be brave. This is having courage. It is standing up for yourself and for others.  Being truthful is also being brave. Courage is waking up being excited about a brand new day.  We must believe in ourselves.  The world needs us today.

7.  Be mindful.  In this very moment we are important in the world.  We are aware sometimes the moon may make one person happy and the other person lonely.  We each see life differently. 

8.  Be Knowing.  We know we are loved.  We know life will give us anything with good thoughts.  We know the amazing thing about every day is we create it along the way.  We know everything is possible with our imagination. 

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The Living Promises is a beautiful piece of jewelry that can be worn everyday, to be admired, and to remember the giver.  However, my hope is to also offer a new path to experience life to the fullest, to brighten the spark that we each contain, and to become a better person.  This, in turn, makes the world a better place to call home. 

The Living Promises pendant is now available in an array of designs as a special order in 14K yellow gold, white gold, or in sterling silver.  

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