make a difference

letting someone know you are greatful to have them in your life. i think it makes a difference for them.

...so share that information. you may inspire them, and they may pay it forward, making a bigger difference in the end.

understanding there is always hope, a possibility of making a difference.
here is a story to illustrate my point:
a man was on vacation in a tropical location, the cayman islands or something similar. he was walking along the beach one day and the shore was littered with starfish. the high tide had washed them in and the low tide had left them behind. this happens often, and many are left to die in the heat.
as he walked along he noticed an elderly gentleman struggling his way along the shore, bending down slowly, picking up a starfish, and throwing it back into the water. the man on vacation made his way up to the elderly gentleman and asked him what he was doing.
“what does it look like i’m doing?” he reponded.
“well sir, there are thousands of starfish up on this shore, you can’t simply save them all. you don’t need to do that, your going to hurt yourself, it really doesn’t matter.”
the elderly man moved on to the next starfish, threw him into the water and said, “well, it mattered to that one,” and continued down the beach.

there are millions of worldly woes, but that just means there are millions of ways to make a difference. “think globally, act locally” was the motto for a teacher of mine. every little bit helps.

maybe i don’t have the ability to change the world, but i have what it takes to change myself and maybe that change can bleed over to those in my life. that is the hope, after all.

the other day i was thinking about this. i’ve always wanted to do something (career wise) in which i could make a difference in someone’s life but i really have no idea what i want to do. i remember telling myself that if, in the end, i just end up being a parent i would have succeed with this goal. parents have the ability to make a difference in a child’s life everyday. i hope i can be that kind of parent one day.
sometimes i get overwhelmed by all the ways to make a difference. so many people need help, and i’m only one person.