Thursday 19 August 2010

The Starfish - Ka Hôkû Kai.

Once upon a time, there was a wise elder who went to the sea to contemplate. One day, while walking along the shore, the elder looked down the beach and saw a gracefully dancing human figure.

The elder wondered out loud; "Who would so joyfully greet this day with hula?" and began to walk faster to catch up.

Getting closer the elder saw that the dancer was a child, who was not dancing at all. The child was reaching down to the sand to pick up something and was very gently throwing it into the sea.

The elder called out to the child; "Aloha! What are you doing?"

The child paused, looked up and replied; "Throwing starfish into the sea."

Surprised, the elder sputtered; "I...I guess I should have asked, WHY are you throwing starfish into the sea?"

The child smiled brightly, pointed upward and, with exquisite simplicity, replied; "The sun is up, the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they will die."

"But, don't you realize, " asked the elder, "that there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it? You can't possibly make a difference!"

The child listened politely then bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it gently into the sea, just beyond the breaking waves then exuberantly declared; "It made a difference for that one."

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