Starfish & Snowflakes - why every little bit counts

Some of you may have already heard these ‘Snowflake’ and ‘Starfish’ stories, however, there is something so beautiful, simple and powerful in their message that they bear the retelling here.

The ‘Starfish’ tale is one I have heard told by Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks and it goes like this …

Once upon a time, there was an old man who used to go to the ocean for exercise. One day, the old man was walking along a beach that was littered with thousands of starfish that had been washed ashore by the high tide. As he walked he came upon a young boy who was eagerly throwing the starfish back into the ocean, one by one. Puzzled, the man looked at the boy and asked what he was doing. 

The young boy paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean. The tide has washed them up onto the beach and they can’t return to the sea by themselves,” the boy replied. “When the sun gets high, they will die, unless I throw them back into the water.”

The old man replied, “But there must be tens of thousands of starfish on this beach. I’m afraid you won’t really be able to make much of a difference.”

The boy bent down, picked up yet another starfish and threw it as far as he could into the ocean. Then he turned, smiled and said, “It made a difference to that one!”

adapted from The Star Thrower, by Loren Eiseley (1907 – 1977)

A similar story is told by the Russian folk tale of the mice watching the snowflakes. It goes like this …

Once upon a time Two mice were sitting watching the snow fall and settle on the branch of a tree. The first mouse asked  ‘How much does a snowflake weigh?’  The second mouse replied  ‘A little less than nothing.’

The mice continued to watch the snow falling. Eventually, the snowflakes lessened and then they stopped. A final snowflake fell onto the branch of the tree. The branch creaked, snapped and fell to the ground. The first mouse exclaimed, ‘So, a little less than nothing can make a big difference!’

‘So as we can see’ said the second mouse, ‘The lessons are clear. Always do what you can to help as little things can make a big difference.’

Thank you mice, I couldn’t put it better myself.

Wishing you a week of blessings.
Inservi Deo et laetare!