The
Old Man and the Starfish
by Irv Furman
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 beached and millions of starfish!"
exclaimed the young man. "How can you make any
difference?"
The old man looked down at the small starfish in his
hand and as he threw it into the safety of the sea,
he said, "I made a difference to this one."
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