Walking in the Valley A weekly column for those who live and walk in Silicon Valley by Barbara Dahlgren

Pearl of Great Value Column for the weeks of September 1-15, 2005

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Pearl, 81 when she passed away, had a most unusual funeral. The music was the usual somber selections. The flowers were the usual beautiful arrays. Pearl had prepaid her funeral expenses and chose a periwinkle blue casket, not one with the ordinary deep mahogany, brownish colors. But all in all it looked just like any other casket. The preacher preached. The mourners mourned. The pall bearers lifted and carried. The funeral director directed. It was just your ordinary, everyday funeral service except for one thing…..no one there was a blood relative. Yet the pews were filled. Pearl had no family except for those of us who knew her from church.

Pearl was born in Hampton, VA, the youngest of eight children. Her parents didn’t teach their kids much about the Bible except that it’s more blessed to give than receive and don’t store up goods in barns. Pearl never felt loved by her parents. She gained her joy from growing things. She had a magic touch with plants. Her specialties were African violets, orchids, cacti, and succulents. She also liked to sketch animals and birds. She loved God’s creation.

She moved to CA in her early twenties. She had several jobs but settled in to work for twenty years as a home care provider. She liked looking after others. Pearl never married. She never had children. I don’t even know where her brothers and sisters are, if they are living or dead. She became a Christian in 1969 and attended our church ever since.

Pearl wasn’t the friendliest member in the pew. It wasn’t so much that she wasn’t friendly; she just wasn’t what you would call a people person. And then her face seemed to have a perpetual look of gloom. She wasn’t gloomy but her face was just made that way. It could be quite scary to those who didn’t take the time to get to know her. In spite of her daunting appearance, Pearl had a heart of gold. Even when her health was failing she asked the pastor, “What can I do to help at church?” She started providing him with little plants to give to people who were ill, in the hospital, or just needed a lift.

Pearl could be quite humorous. Although, one never knew if it was intentional or not. Like the time last year when a new fellow helped with communion. She leaned over to the woman next to her and said, “Who the hell is that?” It just happened to be that lady’s son. Or during her last days when a dear friend said, “It won’t be long now Pearl until you’ll be sitting in the lap of God.” Pearl replied. “Now won’t that be funny? A big woman like me sitting in His lap.” Her advice was always, “Put your trust not in mortals, but trust in God – and don’t believe everything you hear.”

Pearl suffered from that Christian malady called “not good enough-itis.” She never felt good enough. Academically she knew God loved her, but emotionally she thought, “How could He? I’m just not good enough.” But it’s not about how good we are; it’s about how great He is. Even Pearl’s name can teach us a lesson.

Did you know a pearl is known as the "Queen of Gems?" This unique treasure is produced by a living animal. It requires no mining, extraction, cutting, or polishing to reveal its splendor. It’s the only jewel that doesn’t need man’s help to be beautiful. Pearls come in a wide range of shapes and colors: white, silvery white, pink, salmon, red, copper, bronze, brown, lavender, purple, green, blue, cream, and yellow. Today many women have pearls but they used to be the most expensive jewelry in the world.

Maybe that’s why Jesus uses it in a parable in Matthew 13:44-46. He tells the story of a merchant who was searching for the pearl of great value. When he found it, he sold everything he had to purchase it. Many say we represent that merchant and the kingdom of heaven is the pearl. But analogies can work both ways. We could never really afford to purchase the kingdom of heaven so others say God is that merchant and we are his pearls. I like that!

Be sure to visit this page often to read the next edition of Walking in the Valley. You can write to the author at bdahlgren@wcgsouthbay.org.