A Jaeger of Faith

This is one of the most personal watches I own. I first encountered it in an antique shop where I’d already found a few nice vintage watches. I was just in the middle of buying a cute little Omega when I discovered the Jaeger in question. Its condition was… less than functional, and the price reflected that. The catch was that it was a cash-only business. Don’t get me wrong – they always gave me a receipt, even when I insisted it wasn’t necessary, but they had no payment processing system. So, as it was, I didn’t have the cash on me tocomplete the deal that day, but the proprietor kindly agreed to hold the watch for me at our agreed-upon price.
That said, at the time, I was still actively using cannabis, and my priorities prevented me from returning there until I first went to a rehab facility where I began my sobriety journey in early 2021. I spent 25 days there before continuing for another 20 months in a therapeutic community. In between, I got to spend 3 days at home, during which I made sure to stop by the antique shop and purchase the watch, knowing very well it wasn’t working, and having faith it would sit and wait for me in a drawer, for well over a year, until I could have it fixed. My patience and belief proved worthwhile, and repairing the watch even provided me with a foot in the door of the industry I’m privileged to be a part of to this day.

Details
Brand: Jaeger LeCoultre
Year: circa 1950s
Movement: Manual wind

Dimensions
Diameter: 37mm
Lug to Lug: 45mm
Thickness: 10.8mm
Between the Lugs: 18mm