One Does What One Can

There is an old Arab story about a young man who one day was riding on his donkey. He came upon a sparrow lying on its back in the road. The tiny creatures had two tiny legs pointing skyward.

At first the young man thought the sparrow was dead. But then he saw the bird move. The young man dismounted, went to the tiny creature, and asked, "Are you alright?"

"Yes," the sparrow answered. "Then what are you doing lying on your back with your legs pointing to the sky?" asked the young man.

"Haven't you heard?" asked the sparrow. "Soon heaven is going come crashing down to earth.."

"If it does" responded the Arab young man, "surely you do not think you are going to protect our world with those two scrawny legs."

The sparrow looked at him with a solemn face for a moment and then retorted, "One does what one can."

That little sparrow had a point. We cannot do everything, but we can and we should do what we can.