The butterfly effect ...

... states that the 'wind' caused by the fluttering of the wings of a butterfly might cause some more powerful weather effect elsewhere in the earth's stratasphere. Well I'm not certain this is scientifically based. Some say this is some how related to chaos theory but that's not the point of this blog post.

... Rather, I was totally blown away by a couple of e-mails received over the course of the week. One person said that she had cut and pasted a quotable quote from the BFL guestbook and placed it on her refrigerator for inspiration. Now that's cool. I didn't ever think about someone being so moved by a quote I'd written about. But WOW ... What a humbling experience!

... Another e-mail spoke of how they'd signed up for the President's Challenge (www.presidentschallenge.org) and had earned their Bronze, Silver, and Gold awards. They had credited their success to some small project I had started months ago.

... So what's the point? Such "butterfly effects" remind me that everything we do is important. We may not think so at the time. But there are others in this world who are taking notice. They are watching us. We have the opportunity to set an example -- particularly when we think no one is watching.

... The boxer Mohammed Ali (a.k.a., Casius Clay) once boasted of "floating like a butterfly and stinging like a bee." I must remember that the butterfly has a more lasting effect and that the bee that stings actually kills itself.