A difference

While walking along a beach, an elderly gentleman saw someone in the distance leaning down, picking something up and throwing it into the ocean.
As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, picking up starfish one by one and tossing each one gently back into the water.
He came closer still and called out, “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”
The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”
The old man smiled, and said, “I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?”
To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”
Upon hearing this, the elderly observer commented, “But, young man, do you not realise that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”
The young man listened politely. Then he bent down, picked up another starfish, threw it into the back into the ocean past the breaking waves and said, “It made a difference for that one.”

A traditional fable

Sadly I missed this one, carelesssly tossed aside amongst all the fishing paraphernalia. The colours and shapes are festive and jolly but I found it very depressing.
A grey kind of day but himself has worked very hard and cupboards, plus snazzy new stripy material are up. Almost done.
Flights are now booked for sons and brother to come for Christmas - maddening and cynical how prices rise so dramatically just over a few crucial days.

Chips and arthouse tonight - Breathe In, with Guy Pearce, a story of love and heartbreak. And TJ's coming too.