It was a beautiful Sunday morning.The air was fresh and the seagulls were looking for food along the beach. Thewaves came crashing against the rocks, but gently, as if not wanting to hurtthem. The smell of the ocean filled my lungs and penetrated every pore. I was thefirst person on the beach to see the sunrise. The sun came out very slowly andshyly, then suddenly we were face to face as he showed me his splendor. His warmrays gently touched my skin and made me shiver. As I turned to the deep blue sky,I noticed I was not the only person on the beach.

In the distance I saw aboy of about 12. As I walked closer, I noticed he was picking up something andthrowing it into the ocean. I asked, "What are you doing?" He turnedand said, "I'm throwing the starfish back into the water before the tidegets low and the seagulls eat them." I laughed and asked, "Do you knowhow many starfish are along the seashore? Do you really think you are making adifference?" He bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it back intothe ocean. He looked at me with big green eyes and said, "For that starfishI made a great difference." He turned and ran, leaving me in front of theocean, thinking.