Pearls

I grew up wanting to wear my grandmother's pearls. I loved how beautiful and shiny they were against her brown skin. I knew it was a special occasion if my grandmother was wearing her pearls. Ironically, "pearl" was one of her nicknames. My grandmother valued her pearls, maybe because she knew what it cost her or maybe because wearing her pearls made her forget momentarily that she was a Black woman raised in the segregated South.

The bible speaks about not throwing your pearls to swine. Simply put, don't give what you value away. Some species of oysters die when a pearl is harvested. Are you willing to die for what you produced? Are you willing to die for your purpose to be accomplished? Your life's work is your pearl. 

Pearls are produced by irritation. The defense mechanism of the oyster is to isolate the irritant. What's irritating you? It's producing your pearls. Every layer you use to isolate the irritation is adding dimension, color, and value to your pearls. 

Zest

"If things don't come easy, there is no premium on effort. There should be joy in the chase, zest in the pursuit."-Branch Rickey
 

I can admit that when things become challenging one of the first things to go is my joy. I get stressed. I worry. I'm easily irritated, and I snap easily. I'm learning that I need to turn my stress into zest. I can do something productive with that energy. I can work out. I can write. I can pray. I can clean. I can remind myself that this too will pass. I can ask myself what am I supposed to learn in this situation? What's the lesson? Refocus. Get a new perspective...No matter what you are facing remember...turn your stress into zest.