- published: 20 May 2016
- views: 614003
A pearl is a hard object produced within the soft tissue (specifically the mantle) of a living shelled mollusk. Just like the shell of a mollusk, a pearl is made up of calcium carbonate in minute crystalline form, which has been deposited in concentric layers. The ideal pearl is perfectly round and smooth, but many other shapes of pearls (baroque pearls) occur. The finest quality natural pearls have been highly valued as gemstones and objects of beauty for many centuries, and because of this, the word pearl has become a metaphor for something very rare, fine, admirable, and valuable.
The most valuable pearls occur spontaneously in the wild, but they are extremely rare. These wild pearls are referred to as natural pearls. Cultured or farmed pearls from pearl oysters and freshwater mussels make up the majority of those that are currently sold. Imitation pearls are also widely sold in inexpensive jewelry, but the quality of their iridescence is usually very poor, and generally speaking, artificial pearls are easily distinguished from genuine pearls. Pearls have been harvested and cultivated primarily for use in jewelry, but in the past they were also stitched onto lavish clothing. Pearls have also been crushed and used in cosmetics, medicines, and in paint formulations.
They'd say Pearl go get your boots on, we've got a
field to plow
Girl put down that book you aint got no time to read
right now
Mama she don't know the kind of visions that I see
But my ticket to the world is the soul inside of me
She'd go barefoot down to Beale street, she had no
fancy shoes
She's tell them she was 21 and got paid to sing the
blues
She'd crawl back into her window every night at 2:00 am
And pray her daddy didn't come to steal her innocence
again
But finally she had her bus fare
They never found out where she'd gone
She left a note that said I'm goin' someplace
To make this life a better home
They'd say Pearl go get your boots on, we've got a
field to plow
Girl put down that book you aint got no time to read
right now
Mama she don't know the kind of visions that I see
But my ticket to the world is the soul inside of me
I met her in a lonely church one cloudy afternoon
She was singin' softly to the Lord and fillin' up the
room
I said I've seen you on the big stage, lights and glory
all around
Pearl what brings you to this place, she said it's my
hometown
And I need just like the next one to remember who I was
So I've come back to find forgiveness
To see my past through eyes of love
They'd say Pearl go get your boots on, we've got a
field to plow
Girl put down that book you aint got time to read right
Mama she don't know the kind of visions that I see
But my ticket to the world is the soul inside of me
( Soul inside of me, Soul inside of me, Soul inside of
me )