The Parable of the Starfish — a traditional tale
Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2019 5:05 pm
One day, an old man was walking along a beach that was littered with thousands of starfish that had been washed ashore by the high tide. As he walked he came upon a young boy who was eagerly throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one by one.
Puzzled, the man looked at the boy and asked what he was doing. Without looking up from his task, the boy simply replied, “I’m saving these starfish.”
The old man chuckled aloud. “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make?”
The boy picked up a starfish, gently tossed it into the water and turning to the man, said, “I made a difference to that one!”
Life presents us with an awful lot of beaches full of starfish, situations where solving the whole problem seems so far beyond our capabilities that it’s not worth it to even bother.
Yet, there’s always a piece we can do. There’s always a starfish we can throw back in the water.
I can’t solve child hunger, but I can put some items on the shelf at the local food pantry and make sure that some kid has supper tonight.
I can’t be a perfect parent all the time, but I can be a good parent right at this moment. Same for being a husband. Same for being a writer.
I can’t make everyone in the world like me, but I can be a good friend to this person right in front of me right now.
Focus on the starfish, not the beach.
Puzzled, the man looked at the boy and asked what he was doing. Without looking up from his task, the boy simply replied, “I’m saving these starfish.”
The old man chuckled aloud. “Son, there are thousands of starfish and only one of you. What difference can you make?”
The boy picked up a starfish, gently tossed it into the water and turning to the man, said, “I made a difference to that one!”
Life presents us with an awful lot of beaches full of starfish, situations where solving the whole problem seems so far beyond our capabilities that it’s not worth it to even bother.
Yet, there’s always a piece we can do. There’s always a starfish we can throw back in the water.
I can’t solve child hunger, but I can put some items on the shelf at the local food pantry and make sure that some kid has supper tonight.
I can’t be a perfect parent all the time, but I can be a good parent right at this moment. Same for being a husband. Same for being a writer.
I can’t make everyone in the world like me, but I can be a good friend to this person right in front of me right now.
Focus on the starfish, not the beach.
