Pearls

I wish that I could remember what book I was reading that talked about pearls but I've been reading so much lately and sleeping so little.  When I remember I'll try to remember to come back and edit this post! :D  I've never been a huge fan of pearls.  I thought they were jewelry that screamed to the world you were old or at least old fashioned.  (I've never been up on fashion so I am fully aware that I'm clueless in this area).  My husband even got me a necklace for mother's day after we had 3 kids that had little charms with his and the kids' names on them.  I loved it but it had a pearl on it with his name and that little pearl almost made me uncomfortable.... until now.

While I was reading whatever book it was I realized, for the first time, what a wonder a pearl actually is.  A life threatening foreign object enters an oyster's shell.  The oyster covers that unwanted sand or bacteria with nacre, layer by layer, until a pearl is formed.  It isn't something that happens in an instant but over time something beautiful becomes of what could have been a disaster.

So it is with all trials in life.  We can do nothing or whine and moan about the inconvenience of them and suffer.  Or, we can choose to learn and grow in our trials, applying the grace of God, layer by layer, to find a life full of pearls.  The choice is ours.  Life is full of trials but how much we suffer is up to us.  I'm choosing to create pearls.