[Rosemary]

"The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well."
Ralph Waldo Emerson

I like this quote.
And this story...

Starfish

One day, a man was walking along a beach.

He noticed a young boy who was reaching down, picking up small objects and throwing them into the sea.

As he got closer, he called out "Good morning. May I ask what you are doing?"

The young boy paused, looked up and replied "Throwing starfish into the sea."

The man bewilderedly asked  "Why are you throwing starfish into the sea?"

To this the young boy replied "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they will die."

Hearing this the man said "There are miles of beach and there are starfish along every mile. You can't possibly make a difference."

At this, the young boy bent down, picked up another starfish and threw it into the sea. As it met the water, he said "Well, it made a difference for that one."

[deepinthewoods]

excellent, needed to hear that today. thank you

[Crofter]

Deeply philosophical one this:-


Never judge a man until you have walked a mile in his shoes......


Then it's ok to judge him as he's a mile away, and anyway you've got his shoes.

[SallyintNorth]

That's lovely, Rosemary.

Have you ever seen or read "The Man who Planted Trees"?

[suziequeue]

Ah yes - The man who planted trees. Great book. We were reading It this weekend

My other favourites  are Jonathon Livingston Seagul and A day in the life of Ivan Denisovich...... Equally powerful

[Dan]

Have you ever seen or read "The Man who Planted Trees"?

I hadn't, but just found a translation online - http://home.infomaniak.ch/arboretum/Man_Tree.htm

Thank you.   

[SallyintNorth]

Spookily, I have read and liked both of those, too, suzieQ - also more than once!

[deepinthewoods]

the alchemist, diceman, catch22, and 'the bible(according to spikemilligan)'  all major influences on my life thus far.