It's a difficult thing to let someone go, be it for a short period of time, or forever.
Now one thing I don't understand... is why he would give you the ring back? Why not take it with him? I don't want to sound... mean or off the wall... but this doesn't make sense to me. Had someone given me a ring representing her love for me... I would NEVER let it out of my sight. This is just me mind you.
There are many things you can do to keep busy. When you're overseas, go sightseeing. Hit up a club, musical venue, museum, visit friends, make new friends, travel, read a few books, etc... Basically you sound like you want to keep busy without feeling empty. I'll be honest, you'll miss him no matter what you do, but the more you concentrate on yourself, and the things you want to do, you'll find that the time will move faster than speeding bullet. Trust me on this one.
As for giving him a ring, he sounds like an old-fashioned kind of guy, to the point to where he feels he has to do all the "guy" things. I think it's really nice of you to do that for him. If he doesn't like it well... too bad. I say you should do it, because every time he looks at it, he'll realize that someone loves him... and that is the best feeling in the world.
Good luck.
