Tuesday, July 3, 2012

The Starfish Story



Like most motivational stories- this one has a million different versions, and everyone tells it a little different.  Today I want to tell you the version that I tell other people- when it feels like life is overwhelming.

A young couple on their honeymoon were taking an early morning stroll on the beach.  They walked hand in hand until abruptly, the wife stopped in her tracks.  Before her were hundreds of starfish, washed up by the turbulent ocean waves. She immediately started scooping them up- one by one, and started tossing them back into the ocean.  Her husband watched- amused, and then finally asked, "Honey, what are you doing?"  Without  stopping she replied, "The tide is going out- if they stay up here on the beach they will die."  He looked skeptical, "There are at least ten more miles of beach here- you can't possibly think you can make a difference.  There is no way to save them all."  She paused for a moment, and looked at him.  She then turned, and tossed the starfish she was holding in her hands back into the ocean, "It made a difference for that one."

You know how some things just stick with you?  That is how I feel about this story.  On the days where you feel like you aren't making a difference, or like you just want to give up- think of a starfish.  Nothing in life feels better than doing good for others, and it just takes ONE person, to make a big difference in someone elses life.

So let's do a little show and tell- who threw you back into the ocean?  What do you do in your every day life to try to make a difference?


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