This story resonates with my mission as a Speech Language Pathologist, reflects the reasons I went into teaching at the University level, and why I founded Express Speech & Augmentative Communication Services. There are so many who need our help, we can a have a greater ripple effect as we all work together to make a difference.
The StarFish Story adapted from “The Star Thrower” by Loren Eiseley (1907-1977)
One day, a man was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. As he got closer, he noticed that it was a young child, and she was not dancing at all.
The child was reaching down, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer and called out “Good morning! what are you doing?” The child paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”
“Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled man.
The child replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
The man commented, “But, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile?
You can’t possibly make a difference!”
At this, child bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, the child said,
“It made a difference to that one.”
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