To make a small difference

To make a small difference.

Oh! To light a lamp at the altar of life; to bring some cheer to beings in strife.

In this context, I would like to share a beautiful anecdote I saw in the net:

While walking along a beach, a young gentleman saw an elderly man in the distance, leaning down. On coming closer, the young man saw that the elderly gentleman was picking up starfish painstakingly- one after the other- and throwing them back into the sea.

The young man, consumed with curiosity at this strange behavior, came closer still and called out, “Good morning, sir! May I ask what your grand plan is?”

The elderly man paused, looked up, and smiled, “Simple…throwing starfish back into the ocean.”

The tide had thrown up several thousands of starfish-struggling to breathe -on to the shore.

The young man smiled and asked again, “There are so many thousands of them…you can’t obviously save all of them. So what difference does it make, my good sir?”

 The elderly smiled again, and tossing yet another fish into the ocean, remarked, “There! I made a difference to that one.”

***

True, we do have the likes of Swami Vivekananda, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Abe Lincoln and so many others who have spent their entire life in the service of humanity. We also read nowadays about some inspired, highly educated young people who give up plum jobs in order to serve humbly in some rural area.

Obviously, not everyone can make such huge sacrifices since most have their own family commitments and other duties. Charity, as they say, begins at home. But like the starfish saving gentleman, every one of us can make small differences, at least, as per our capabilities. For example, one can decide not to drive such a hard bargain with the railway porter. Let him get a few rupees more than his due- his job is so tough! Or, one can restrain an impulse to bawl at the harassed waiter in a busy hotel. A trivial sum can often help a needy child to buy the school books or pay the tuition. There are so many ways to bring a little sunshine to a needy person’s life-and thereby to our own drab lives too.

Who knows, this kind act might dissuade someone from becoming a radical or criminal; another may be inspired to become a good Samaritan.

The touching poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson, defining true success, brings this sentiment out beautifully:

 “To laugh often and much;

To win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children;

To earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends;

To appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; To leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition;

To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”

Read again the poem’s last lines: “--To know even one life has breathed easier because you lived. This is to have succeeded.”

What more needs to be said after the Guru has spoken!

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