The Starfish

 

 

There was a young man walking down a

deserted beach just before dawn.

In the distance he saw a frail old man.

 

As he approached the old man

he saw him picking up stranded starfish

and throwing them back into the sea.

 

The young man gazed in wonder as the

old man again and again threw the small starfish

from the sand to the water.

 

He asked, “Old man, why do you spend so much

energy doing what seems to be a waste of time?”

 

The old man explained that the stranded starfish

would die if left in the morning sun.

 

“But there must be thousands of beaches and millions of starfish!”

exclaimed the young man.

“How can you make any difference?”

 

The old man looked at the small starfish in his hand

and as he threw it to the safety of the sea, he said,

“It makes a difference to this one!”

 

Author unknown