wedding

In a world where love seems to be weighed in carats and measured by a suitor’s purchasing power, Micherre Fox boldly chose a different path. When she and her partner began discussing marriage two years ago, the New Yorker quickly realized that her engagement—and the ring that comes with it—didn’t have to follow some predetermined social norm. It could mean something.

From then on, Fox was determined to make her engagement ring a unique reflection of her beliefs about marriage: determination, perseverance, and the ability to overcome challenges.

That meant store-bought diamonds were off the counter. Fox would have to find one herself.

Could you have spotted Fox's diamond?Credit: Crater of Diamonds State Park

“There’s something symbolic about solving problems with money, but sometimes money runs out in a marriage,” she explains. “You need to be willing and able to address those issues with hard work.”

Despite the skepticism from her social circle, Fox and her partner decided to postpone their engagement for a month. This was not a delay, but an opportunity for Fox to symbolically commit to the hard work and dedication that she believes a successful marriage requires.

So, after graduating with a master’s degree in management from Fordham University, the 31-year-old packed her bags and flew halfway across the country to Arkansas, where a month-long treasure hunt awaited her at Crater of Diamonds State Park.

Yes, you read that right. Fox went diamond hunting.

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The only place in the world

Although Fox was “willing to go anywhere in the world” to turn her D.I.Y. diamond dream into a reality, her research led her to a surprising discovery: she wouldn’t need to jet set overseas, or even pull out her passport. Everything her heart desired could be found in a 37-acre field in Pike County, Arkansas.

Among the tall pines of Murfreesboro lies Crater of Diamonds State Park, the “only place in the world” where the public can search for and keep the diamonds they find. For just $15 a day, Fox was finally free to scour the volcanic crater’s eroded surface, which has been revealing rarities and artifacts since 1906.

Welcome to the "Crater."Credit: Amy, Flickr

Affectionately known as the “Crater” to locals, the park’s glimmering bounty comes from a one-million-year-old natural anomaly: an eroded volcanic formation, or volcanic pipe, that possessed the power to bring diamonds up to the earth’s surface, like bubbles in a Champagne flute. There are other sparkling treasures to be found, too.

21 days of dirt and despair

On July 8, 2025, Fox arrived at Crater of Diamonds State Park, ready to spend the next three weeks searching for her prized rock. The search was anything but glamorous. Unlike Indiana Jones tracking the Sankara stones in the Temple of Doom, Fox was stuck solo, systematically combing through the sticky, dark gray soil known to local farmers as “Black Gumbo.”

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Rainfall helped but also didn't, with showers washing away dirt and uncovering anything near the surface, while simultaneously introducing humus, or decomposed plant and animal matter, to the soil, making it even stickier and more challenging to work through. Park staff plowed the field regularly. And yet, Fox remained empty-handed, pushing through growing physical exhaustion and mounting disappointment.

“I was coming to terms with the fact I was likely leaving without a diamond,” she told The New York Times.

Although the park averages one to two diamonds a day, with visitors finding more than 600 diamonds annually, these are usually teeny gemstones. The average size of a diamond found here is about the size of a match head—definitely not the heft, symbolically and literally, that Fox was hoping to find.

But Fox had made a commitment—to herself, to her partner, and to the values she wanted their engagement to represent.

That magic moment

On July 29—her very last day at the park—Fox was walking along the West Drain area when something caught her eye. Could it be?

“Having never seen an actual diamond in my hands, I didn’t know for sure, but it was the most ‘diamond-y diamond’ I had seen,” Fox later recalled.

Micherre's raw diamond, with a quarter for context. Credit: Crater of Diamonds State Park

She hurried to the Diamond Discovery Center, where the staff confirmed her discovery. It was a white, or colorless, diamond, about the size of a human canine tooth. Fox, overwhelmed with joy, named it the “Fox-Ballou Diamond,” after their last names. It had a smooth, rounded shape and a beautiful metallic luster, precisely what every bride-to-be hopes for in an engagement ring.

Oh, and the Fox-Ballou Diamond weighs a whopping 2.3 carats. It’s the third-largest diamond found in the park this year.

A rock that truly rocks

Fox’s diamond now ranks among the Crater’s most significant finds, like this year’s reigning champion, Minnesota resident David DeCook, who found a 3.81-carat brown diamond in April after just one hour of searching, naming it “The Duke Diamond” after his dog.

But the value of the Fox-Ballou Diamond lies far beyond its size or market worth.

Natural diamond prices have declined significantly from their pandemic-era peaks, falling nearly 30% from their 2022 highs due to reduced demand from economic uncertainty, technological advances, and changing consumer attitudes towards laboratory-grown diamonds, particularly among younger generations who prioritize sustainability and ethical sourcing.

In an era of instant gratification and digital shortcuts, Fox’s three-week quest represents something increasingly rare: the willingness to work for something meaningful rather than simply purchasing it—all while maintaining your values. It can seem impossible for love to flourish in today’s wedding industrial complex. Still, as Fox proves, if you’re willing to roll up your sleeves and go to work, you can have your dream engagement ring without reinforcing the value of earth-mined stones (there are many ethical concerns regarding “blood diamonds” and environmental destruction associated with traditional mining operations).

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Modern love

The average price of a 2.3-carat diamond is currently $27,037, according to diamond price aggregate StoneAlgo. However, a diamond of that size can cost anywhere from $7,172–$66,766, depending on the diamond’s shape, color, clarity, and other factors.

That is, if Fox were looking to sell it. (She’s definitely not.)

When she returned home to New York, she proudly walked up to her boyfriend and presented him with a box containing the diamond, The New York Times reports.

His response?

“I’ll say this, I certainly have to find a way to live up to this now," he explains. "She’s dealt her cards and now it’s my turn to put together something impressive, and I’m really looking forward to that.”

Until then, we’ll hang onto Fox’s story as proof that when we’re willing to dig deep—literally and metaphorically—for the things that matter most, we often discover treasures far more valuable.