mollusk

I've been thinking about pearls lately. Timely since it's the birthstone of June. It's not a gemstone at all, but I prefer it to a kidney or gallstone...
It's curious to me that mollusks are able to make pearls. A functional way to take care of discomfort, covering the irritant again and again until it is smooth. A marriage of functionality and beauty.
All I seem to make in response to discomfort are callouses, both physical and emotional. Scuffs against my feet; wrenching of a heart. Sure adversity should produce wisdom and perspective later, but do I culture a pearl? Would an oyster be able (if it were a more complex organism) be able to articulate the level of strife it took to produce such a symmetrical iridescent thing? Is the process too far removed from my trivialities to compare? Do I stop the process short?
The image of the pearl is used a few times in the New Testament: the pearl of great price (Matt 13:45)and casting your pearls before swine (Matt 7:6) come to mind. They always are prized, sought after, and protected. My callouses I try to slough, soften, or moisturize, not cherish, not culture, not promote. Do I prevent a pearl being produced, or does the natural metaphor not transcend species?
More questions than substance at present...