Oh, is it? Let's travel further down into the subatomic world, where all of the mass of the atom is constantly being created and recreated by fluctuations in the Quantum and Higgs fields as virtual mass. As virtual mass, it means that all 'physical' reality is virtual reality.
But the point of the metaphor is that, like the drop of water, we have no real individual identity as the self. What we call 'self' is a collection of past experiences, images, titles, achievements, etc. that we freeze into a concoction we think is our 'self', when, in fact, it is pure illusion. Only the consciousness behind the mask of the self is real. It is not born; it does not die. It is outside of time or space. That is its nature.