In olden times a terrible fire sprang up and threatened the forest. All the animals, great and small, fled in panic to the safety of the seashore. Stunned, they watched in silence as the distant flames grew higher and higher.
“What will you do?” cried one old pelican at last? But none of the other animals answered. “My friends, the forest is your home,” she cried again, “you must do something---it’s on fire!” Silence was the only answer.
At last, the old pelican swooped down from her perch on a piling, scooped up a bill-full of water and flew all the way to the forest to pour it on the fire. Time after time she flew from the seashore to the fire until her weary white wings were singed and covered with soot.
Finally, a curious crow walked over to the Pelican and asked, “Why are you doing that? No one can put out a fire with a bill-full of water.”
The pelican looked kindly at the crow and said quietly, “It is true, I am only one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something.”
Moments later, as the old pelican flew off toward the forest again, she looked behind and saw a breathtaking sight: Thousands and thousands of hummingbirds, crows, robins and wrens, all flying in formation with their beaks full of water. Together, on that day, they quenched the fire below.
Moral: The place you are in needs you today. What can one person do? Just do what you can---and, together, we will make our world a better place. --- Dan Zadra