Once upon a time there was a young boy who was walking along the beach. He noticed thousands of sand dollars had been washed up on the shore during high tide. The beach was covered with dying sand dollars. The little boy was sad, so he started picking up the sand dollars, one by one, and gently tossed them back into the ocean. An older man saw the boy and said “You are just wasting your time. You can’t possibly make a difference. There’s just too many to save.” The little boy picked up another sand dollar, looked at the man and smiled. As he tossed the sand dollar back into the ocean he said “Well, it made a difference to that one.”
Our world has so much hopelessness…..More school shootings. More politics and more bickering. Extinction of animals. Global warming. Hate crimes. Too much hopelessness to comprehend. It’s everywhere….much like dying sand dollars on the beach. Right now, more than ever before, the world needs hope. The hope of that young boy. The hope that making a difference for just one is worth something.
Having a garden is one of the truest, most beautiful outward expressions of hope. Believing in the beauty of tomorrow. Taking time and energy to do something to make a difference….even in the smallest way.
Take the Monarch Butterfly. Monarchs were put on the critically endangered list. People all over the United States stepped up and planted thousands of Milkweed plants. People created wildflower and native gardens, and started protecting butterfly habitats. This year, the population of Monarchs were the largest that has been seen in over 20 years. One by one, gardeners took the time to plant and protect. One at a time. That’s hope. One person really can rise above the hopelessness of a situation and make a difference. Waves of negativity do not change overnight. It starts with just one person changing the tide. That’s hope. Believing, truly believing that things can get better. Making a difference for just one person at a time.
Hope isn’t a false sense of happiness. Hope is simply the belief that when the Lord says “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.”…..that’s exactly what He means. Things in our world aren’t easy right now. There is a lot of hopelessness. We hear it every day. We see it. It’s all around. It’s overwhelming to see beaches covered, knowing that thousands of sand dollars need help. Quite frankly, it is easy to just give up…..but personally, I think that we all want the hope of that little boy. People are desparate for something to believe in. That’s where you come in.
Plant some hope today……..
Pick up that sand dollar, and save it, despite the odds stacked against you.
Find a spot and make it beautiful.
Find some trash and pick it up.
Go to the schools and become a mentor or volunteer.
Help those that need help.
Love those that need love.
Believe in tomorrow.
Despite the horrific news headlines, plant hope. Make a difference for even just one. Believe that things can turn around. Be the one to change the tide. We can’t all do great things for a lot of people, but we can all do great things for just one.
And saving even one sand dollar is worth believing in.