The Starfish Story

An old man had a habit of early morning walks on the beach. One day, after a storm, he

walked along the shoreline. Up ahead, he could see that the tide had receded, leaving behind thousands of beached starfish as far as the eye could see. Stranded high upon the sand, the starfish seemed certain to perish.

Near the water's edge, a young girl scurried back and forth; picking up the creatures one-by-one and throwing each gently back in the water.

The old man approached her, overwhelmed at the apparent futility of the girl's task. "Young lady," he asked, "Why are you throwing the starfish into the ocean?" The girl responded, "The sun is up, and the tide is going out, and if I do not throw them in they will die."

He motioned toward the vast field of starfish stretching far into the distance. "But there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it! There are too many of them! You cannot possibly make a difference."

She smiled and raised a single starfish high into the air before tossing it into the sea, past the breaking waves, saying, "It made a difference for that one." The old man looked at her inquisitively and thought about what she had done. Inspired, he joined her in throwing starfish back into the sea.

Soon others joined, and all the starfish were saved.

Adapted from The Star Thrower by Loren Eiseley (1907-1977).