Whenever I see my pictures of these beautiful stars I feel the sense of awe at the diversity of the species. There are thousands of stars, they are in all shapes and sizes and they can regenerate "arms." They can even defensively shed an arm if needed. Their amazing adaptations is an inspiration.
Many of us have experienced traumas of mind, spirit and body and these sea star offer a lesson. We can as the starfish defend ourselves by shedding an "arm" and run before the situation kills us. Or we can pretend we aren't being gobbled up by the "shark situation."
As a parent with a fabulous son with different abilities, I have found myself in these situations. Whether it is trying to teach him a new skill, fighting for his rights, or just trying to include him in a community or family event. I have to ask am I ready to lose an arm over this? Some of the battles where I've lost an arm were with insurance companies (hugely fun), schools, and city government. Some battles, I've chose were not worth an arm - churches and social events. We've pretty much chosen to stay home on those two fronts the majority of the time.
So here is my message to you if you find yourself with a loved one that occasionally needs a arm loosing battle to happen. It's okay. It's okay to lose the arm, it's okay to decide you can't go to battle, its okay to decide I can fight for this long xxx. Either way make a decision before going about it and then follow through. In fact find another starfish, tell them your limits and let them tell you when it is time to lose the arm. But whatever you do, don't leave your arm in the shark's mouth and lose your whole self! Peace to you, Georgia
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