We people area a lot like paua: on the outside, ordinary, blending in, firmly attached -- on the inside, exhibiting a breathtaking array of unique rainbow colors.

But some people have forgotten they are beautiful inside -- all they can show is their rough dull coat. Their shell has become so tough that the heart can't get out. It takes a lot of courage to expose one's soft side and let it be seen -- to let go of the rocks, to unstick oneself and move....

On the physical side, paua shell has been used in folk medicine to treat hearing disorders and calcium deficiencies.

(Also see mother-of-pearl -- since abalone's inner shell is mother-of-pearl, it will also have many of the properties.)