New Sadek Starfish Shell Covered Tea Mugs Recall the Joy of the Starfish Story

Starfish Covered Tea Mug

I was excited when I ordered these whimsical covered tea mugs for my store.  Made by Andrea by Sadek and topped with a delightful starfish on the lid.  They come in very vivid colors, bright blue, dark aqua, light green and coral and are welcome glimpse of spring.   Simply perfect for those of us who are longing for warmer days. 

They instantly reminded me of the Starfish Story.  I love it when something reminds me of good thoughts during my hectic day.  It is that single heart-beat pause that keeps my feet on a gentler path when tiredness and stress would take me down the dark road of impatience and anger.  It is all too easy to have a bad day.

 

This story has made is way around the web in many adaptations.  Sometimes the "thrower" is a man, woman, or child.  It doesn't matter for the moral is the same.

A young man is walking along the ocean and sees a beach on which thousands and thousands of starfish have washed ashore. Further along he sees an old man, walking slowly and stooping often, picking up one starfish after another and tossing each one gently into the ocean.

“Why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” he asks.

“Because the sun is up and the tide is going out and if I don’t throw them further in they will die.”

 “But, old man, don’t you realize there are miles and miles of beach and starfish all along it! You can’t possibly save them all, you can’t even save one-tenth of them. In fact, even if you work all day, your efforts won’t make any difference at all.”

 

The old man listened calmly and then bent down to pick up another starfish and threw it into the sea. “It made a difference to that one.”

I love smiling at my Starfish Mug and remembering, "Everyone matters, and you can make a difference!"  Even a small smile to a person at the checkout line can be life changing.

 Blessings ~

 

Note:  The starfish story was written by Loren Eiseley (1907-1977) and published as The Star Thrower.