Stories I love and making a difference

There are a few stories in life that I love. And I'm not talking about the life lesson ones your parents tell you like The Boy Who Cried Wolf or the Disney ones. I mean the ones you hear in passing or read in a magazine & they stick with you. Most people have heard about the Welcome to Holland poem by Emily Kingsley and that is a good one.

But my favorite by far is The Starfish Story by Loren Eisley.

When I read it in a magazine many years ago, I was immediately struck. I cut it out of the magazine & pasted it right to me fridge. That way whenever I was feeling discouraged by something, I could read it.

The Starfish Story

adapted from The Star Thrower
by Loren Eiseley
1907 – 1977

Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “I made a difference to that one!”

I also felt that it was really something I would've done as well and something I would've said. Now this story has new meaning for me, but it still helps to keep me from feeling discouraged.