Many a times, in the grand scheme of things, humans tend to overlook the small things in life without realizing the potentially great lesson a simple observation can carry. Allah sends us signs and inspiration through the simplest experience of His creation so that we may reflect and ponder upon life’s amazing lessons.
Years ago, a mother was strolling with one of her adopted daughters along the sandy beach shore when they both came across upon a nesting site where sea turtles were laying their eggs. After hatching, the baby turtles broke their way clumsily to the surface of the sand. As they struggle to race towards the water, tears started to roll down the little girl’s eyes as she noticed some of the sea turtles started to die . She cried to her mother and informed her about the devastating scene. So under her mother’s guidance, they both started scooping as many baby turtles as they can to quickly release them into the ocean. As the little girl sunk into despair with the sight of the dead turtles, her mother consoled her daughter and reassured her that not all the babies have died. The mother would point to each individual baby and show her disheartened daughter that every turtle they pick up from the ground and release into the water is one new turtle that has been saved. She shifted her daughter’s focus from the dead sea turtles to the surviving ones, which motivated the little girl to continue with their rescue mission to save as many turtles as possible.
So what lesson did the mother intentionally try to teach her daughter?
You see, sometimes in life, we may encounter or witness an unfavorable situation which may place us in despair. But rather than just living with the pain and do nothing, we should dedicate our energy to what we have the ability to accomplish and not focus on what we have failed to fix. We all have the power to make an impactful change regardless how insignificant our contributions may seem to us, but sometimes we are inclined to give up and become discouraged when a situation is overwhelmed by trouble and seemingly irreparable damage. And this is exactly the problem, we have wired ourselves into thinking that real change can only be acknowledged when big and instant results are seen, and so we become suppressed from taking action. A tall, strong tree, started off once as only a seed. Maybe we may not see the change today, maybe not tomorrow, but eventually it will bring about a major difference over time.
A prime example is the state of affairs that has been inflicting our very Ummah. All the violence, atrocities, suffering, pain, killings, greed and terror have driven us Muslims to a state of helplessness. Why? Because our expectations aiming to combat major change has left us judging our efforts as insignificant in the face of such overwhelming situations. How can an ordinary person like me fix all this? This unhealthy mentality only drives us to lose hope and feel powerless in the process of trying to bring about change, because whatever we do, our efforts will never be enough.
Our lens of how we perceive our contributions needs to be changed. We need to start magnifying our deeds, and stop belittling them. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “Do not belittle any good deed..” (Muslim).
Sometimes in life, instead of fixating our hopes on the whole picture, we should take time to value the small tiny pixels that have, each in their own little space and role, contributed to something much larger. Just as water droplets make up oceans and pebbles make up mountains, we should all believe that our attempts, even if small, can and will eventually create a ripple effect of change.
Never feel disheartened. The things we have no power over to change, is left to Allah. With sincerity, willpower and passion, our small deeds can cause a great impact, even if it’s in the life of one.
Imagine if each one of us made that small change, how much would the Ummah turn for the better if we all contributed just a little. Use what Allah has blessed you with to help with whatever you have an ability to do.
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”
“Let your good deeds be like rain, drop a little everywhere”
As for the daughter, she is now grown up and presently studying marine biology. She has a dream of one day being able to help and save ocean creatures. Her mother’s invaluable lesson has inspired her mind to achieve great things in life.
May Allah use us for serving His creation and bring about positive changes for the Ummah
