The grit in the oyster

I recently came across an article that discussed something that I've never considered before.  Where do pearls come from?  I've always known that pearls are found in oysters, but why exactly do oysters make pearls?  The answer provides a really great analogy for life and leadership.  

Think about it - the word pearl is itself a metaphor for something rare and valuable.  For example, when we talk about important knowledge or advice, we often use the term "pearl of wisdom."  A pearl is considered one of the oldest and most precious of the precious gems, having been traded for over 6,000 years.  It is often called the "queen of the gemstones", and people in ancient times thought that pearls were the tears of angels.  If you are so inclined, pearl is one of the birthstones for the month of June and is typically given on the 3rd and 30th wedding anniversaries. 

Back to the original question - where do pearls come from?  Pearls, as I stated earlier, are organic (they are actually one of a small number of organic gemstones).  They grow inside molluscs (oysters, clams, and mussels), and they are essentially made of calcium carbonate.  But here is the really cool aspect of pearls - they actually start out as a piece of sand, grit, or other foreign object - in other words, an irritant!  In order to protect itself, the mollusc secretes a shiny, silky substance called nacre (also known as "mother of pearl" for obvious reasons now) to cover the irritant and wall it off from the rest of the organism.  Nacre is the same substance that lines the inner portion of the shell.  Over time, the mollusc will continue to secrete nacre around the piece of sand until it forms a pearl!

Think about it - pearls essentially exist as a defense mechanism against an irritant!  One of the most precious of gems starts out as the "grit in the oyster."  The metaphor here is a beatiful one.  Call it whatever you want, perseverance or resilience, we too can make a pearl out of a piece of sand.  

The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche famously said, "That which does not kill us makes us stronger."  

Winston Churchill said, "If you are going through Hell, keep going."  

And Helen Keller said, "We can do anything we want to do if we stick to it long enough."  

Nelson Mandela said, "It always seems possible until it's done."  

The Navy SEALS live by the motto, "The only easy day was yesterday."  

All of these quotes essentially say the same thing - no matter what the trial in life we face, if we keep trying and don't quit, we can make something beautiful (a pearl), out of something ugly (a piece of grit).