The little things

A Facebook friend this morning wrote that what she had done was only a little thing but it had made a difference in the bigger picture.  That set me thinking about the little things and how important they are.  I thought particularly of the dot or full stop.  Of all the punctuation marks, the full stop is the smallest but has a very important role.  It means the end of a sentence - completion.  It is the first punctuation mark a child is taught.

But then the dot has other important functions.  Try to get a website or send an email when you've missed out a dot or put it in the wrong place!   Without the dot, it doesn't work or you get a site you don't want.  The Morse Code is made up of dots and dashes and again, a dot missed out or in the wrong place can mean a completely different letter.  Even the spaces between letters and words are measured in dots.  If the dot was missed out the 'i' would be an 'e', making 'sit' 'set'.  I'm sure many others examples could be found.


Morse Code

Putting a decimal point in the wrong place can make a big difference.  The problems of division and multiplication involving decimal points and where to put it in the answer!  And what would dice or dominoes be like without the dots?   Braille is also based on the dot system and makes a huge difference to the quality of life of someone with limited or no vision.   

Apart from the dot there are other small things that make a difference.  Miss out the pinch of salt or a spoonful of sugar and the taste of food is quite different.  Remember the old saying 'Look after the pennies and the pounds will look after themselves'.  Or, as in the case of my online friend, a spoken word at the right time and circumstance can make a difference to others.  

As someone who is vertically challenged, I am encouraged to think that small is important and can make a difference.