Oysters And Pearls: Approaches To Life

Pearls are precious gems and have been of great value since 2300 BC. Pearls are formed inside oysters or mollusks.

According to Pearls.com, pearls are formed when an irritant, usually a parasite, and not the proverbial grain of sand, works its way into an oyster, mussel, or clam. As a defense mechanism, a fluid is used to coat the irritant. Subsequent layer upon layer of this coating called “nacre”, which is usually made from calcium carbonate, is deposited on the irritant. This continues until a lustrous pearl is formed.

There are 3 types of pearls:

1. Natural pearls,
2. Cultured pearls, and
3. Artificial pearls.

The process of formation of natural peals can take at least 3 years. The cultured pearls can take from 1 to 3 years. Artificial pearls, however, don’t take long to produce. They are produced by immersion of glass beads into a solution of finely ground oyster shells with a sticky material. Natural pearls last longer and are more expensive than cultured pearls. Cultured pearls are more expensive and durable than artificial pearls.

The desire to create wealth can stem from a defense mechanism from the irritant called POVERTY. I grew up in a very very poor household and I hated being from a poor home. I started very early to battle poverty. Another irritant for me was illiteracy in my home. As I mentioned in one of my earlier posts I found out that the acquisition of sound education was the best leverage from poverty. Public schools have also become very defective, so providing functional, but affordable, education is a way out of it.

If you can provide a service or solution to what irritates you and a majority of the population around you, be rest assured that wealth will naturally follow. Remember that the oysters secrete calcium carbonate crystals from within itself and mixes it with another very sticky substance. The raw materials are from the environment. The ant also mixes grains of sand with saliva that it secrets to build the very hard exterior of the termite colony and the very smooth interior.

What you need to create something of value to yourself and your environment are within and and around you.

The Oyster and the Ant have known how to create beauty, solid infrastructure, and value from within them and around them. Learn to have the Oyster and Ant mentality. It is your responsibility to ensure you do not react negatively to irritation around you.

Mary Slessor reacted positively to the irritant of killing of twins in Calabar and she became an icon in Nigeria. Mahatma Gandhi reacted positively with passive resistance to Churchill’s aggression. Gandhi won independence for India and a name for himself. Nelson Mandela reacted in a unique way to apartheid and he became a global icon and won the Nobel peace prize. Martin Luther King Jnr. reacted to racial discrimination in Alabama, which was sparked by Rosa Parks’ reaction to the irritant behaviour of the driver of her bus, James Blake. They both became national heroes.

Cultured pearls are produced by the insertion of a graft of mollusk or oyster tissue into a live oyster. This stimulates the same reaction as in the formation natural pearls. The process can also take from 2 to 3 years. This is like getting an inspiration from someone.

I got the inspiration for what I am doing today—building schools and investing—from three sources.

1. My Archbishop Benson Idahosa,
2. Brother Emma Okorie of Living Word Ministries, Aba where I got born again, and
3. Bishop David Oyedepo when I went to visit Canaan Land about 16 years back.

One of the theories of development is the “flying geese theory of development“. It postulates that development in one country would stimulate development in nearby countries. Examples of the Asian Tigers and emirates in the United Arab Emirates are good examples. The seed of development in one community stimulates development in nearby communities. When Canaan Land and Covenant University started at Ota, Ogun State, the whole area was underdeveloped, but within a few years that whole area of Ogun state has experienced great development.

There are some neurons in the human brain called mirror neurons. They are responsible for the human ability to copy activities performed by others. My stay in Ibo land in Southeastern Nigeria introduced a graft of the spirit of enterprise into my life and I’m glad it happened.

You have noticed that the process of creating pearls by oysters takes up to 3 years. 3 years out of the life of an oyster must be a significant percentage of its lifespan. Precious things, even wealth, that will endure, takes time.

The way to distinguish between natural pearls and cultivated pearls is to slide them across your teeth. Cultured pearls slide smoothly across the teeth. Natural pearls are gritty, they have some friction.

Due process is not an easy way to achieve anything. It is usually quite gritty. Aliko Dangote once said that when young people see him and admire him, they do not realize it has taken him more than thirty years of hard work to reach where he is now.

Artificial pearls, however, are created by dipping glass beads into a solution of ground oyster shells with a sticky material. It is also very easy for artificial pearls to peel off this coat easily. They are of little value and durability.

I see a lot get-rich-quick schemes and easy money. I have also noticed that “come easy, go easy” is a reality. People want cheap certificates without hard work and study. I met a lady today who said that she was a University graduate, but that she cannot read or write. How is that possible? Artificial intelligence?

The other lessons from the Oyster is that it deposits crystals in layers round the stimulant. Once you get a business idea that works, build several layers of successive and successful businesses round it.

God Bless You.