Coral and Musk
Have you ever seen a live coral? It is very living secluded at dark bottom of the sea. But when it is relentless picked and brought out of water it turns hard, as hard as a rock. In the bright sunshine far away from the se, the once beautiful coral becomes no more than a pale and stiff skeleton.
As is well know, musk is not only valuable in Chinese medicine but also treasured as a perfume. As a matter of fact it is only a sort of substance secreted from a sac beneath the abdominal skin of the male musk deer. To obtain must one has to catch and kill the deer. But it’s a hard job, for the deer can only be found in the depth of the forest. Moreover it is active and lively, running as fast as the wind. Nobody less than first-class hunter can track it down. Even if he succeed, it is still very difficult to get its musk. According to experienced hunters, one has to hold one’s breath to approach it, otherwise the deer would get alerted and bite off its musk sac before it is killed.
So in nature there are creatures that cherish dignity much more than human beings. When they anticipate crises and their life is at risk, they will resort to change, abandonment, or even death to safeguard their dignity.