There was a man who was walking along a sandy beach where thousands of

starfish had been washed up on the shore. He noticed a boy picking the

starfish one by one and throwing them back into the ocean. The man observed

the boy for a few minutes and then asked what he was doing. The boy replied

that he was returning the starfish to the sea, otherwise they would die.

The man asked how saving a few, when so many were doomed, would make any

difference whatsoever? The boy picked up a starfish and threw it back into

the ocean and said "Made a difference to that one..."

The man left the boy and went home, deep in thought of what the boy had

said. He soon returned to the beach and spent the rest of the day helping

the boy throw starfish in to the sea....

~Loren Eiseley

I hope when I'm washed up on the beach I will be one of the starfish chosen to be thrown back into the ocean. I can probably safely say I have been thrown back a few times. :) Until then, I'm going to do everything I can to keep swimming.