The Starfish Story

Paraphrased from: The Star Thrower By Loren Eiseley 

Once upon a time there was a wise man that used to go to the ocean to do his writing. One day he was walking along the shore. As he looked down the beach, he saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself to think of someone who would dance to the day, so he began to walk faster to catch up. 

As he got closer, he saw that it was a young man and the young man wasn't dancing, but instead he was reaching down to the shore, picking up something and very gently throwing it into the ocean. As he got closer he called out, "Good morning! What are you doing?" 

The young man paused, looked up and replied, "Throwing starfish in the ocean." 

"I guess I should have asked, why are you throwing starfish in the ocean?" 

"The sun is up and the tide is going out. And if I don't throw them in they'll die."

 "But, young man, don't you realize that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it. You can't possibly make a difference?" 

The young man listened politely, then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea, past the breaking waves and said, "It made a difference for that one."