Rachel Pedersen’s husband, Poul Pedersen, makes her sparkle more than a gigantic diamond ever could. “Diamond size doesn’t equal the amount of love between two people,” Pedersen tells Us Weekly. Sadly, not everyone seems to agree. In a powerful Facebook post that went viral, the Minnesota-based mother explained why she will never trade in her “1/4 carat tops” ring for a bigger one.
“Friends and family often ask me when I’m going to have it upgraded … After all, it doesn’t represent the level of success we are achieving,” the 27-year-old wrote on February 4. “I’ve even had one person say, ‘You should wear a bigger ring for important events, so people don’t think you’re not successful.’”
She continued: “Wait a minute … Since when did the size of someone’s ring become an indication of success!? For me, the ring is SO much more. My ring symbolizes a whirlwind, storybook, ‘make you sick’ love story.”
When Rachel and Poul met in October 2013, he was a window washer, and she was a hairstylist and single mother of daughter Dakota. Now, she works as a full-time marketing consultant, while Poul is a Service Advisor at Mini Cooper. The couple — who eloped at the Chapel of Love in Minnesota's Mall of America just 13 days after meeting— are the parents of Dakota, 5, and Delilah, 20 months.
"I used to dream of a Tiffany’s 2-carat, round-cut solitaire,” Rachel tells Us. “I learned something greater through the process of meeting Poul, and that was that a true love with a foundation of respect and trust is far more valuable than a large diamond.”
This article originally appeared on www.usmagazine.com: Woman’s Powerful Defense of Her ‘Small’ Engagement Ring Goes Viral