Spence the Expunged Sponge


Spencer was not a delinquent ocean sponge. He was raised properly by his parents, but he made some bad decisions. True, he was under pressure of turbulent ocean currents, but that does not excuse his behavior. So, he ended up spending six months in prison. Being a young adult, this criminal record could make it difficult for him to find employment. So, after he completed his sentence, he went before the judge to get his record expunged. The judge, after careful thought, explained that while Spencer's actions were indeed reckless, the ocean was a place of second chances. "Spencer," the judge began, adjusting her coral glasses, "you may have been caught in a bad tide, but we all know even the strongest of us sometimes get swept away. I'm willing to expunge your record, but you must prove you're ready to clean up your act."


Spencer nodded earnestly. "Thank you, Your Honor. I promise to turn over a new… er, sponge."


The judge smiled faintly. "Good. But first, there's one condition. You must complete 200 hours of community service cleaning up the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Think of it as making up for all the harm caused by your poor decisions and ensuring you absorb some valuable life lessons."


Spencer gulped. He wasn't exactly thrilled at the thought of spending days soaking up trash, but he knew it was his ticket to a fresh start. With a determined nod, he accepted the condition.


The next day, Spencer found himself on a cleanup team led by an eccentric but dedicated sea turtle named Myrtle. Myrtle wore a faded captain's hat and spoke in riddles that Spencer rarely understood.


"Remember, young sponge," Myrtle said as they floated among floating debris, "a spotless past is not the goal. A spotless ocean is. Now, fetch me that plastic fork before it becomes another unfortunate fish's toothbrush."


As Spencer dove into the work, he discovered something surprising: he was good at it. His porous body was perfect for soaking up oil spills and filtering microplastics from the water. Word of his efficiency spread, and soon other sea creatures were cheering him on.


"Way to go, Spence!" shouted a school of sardines. "You're a real life saver."


"Thanks." Spencer beamed, though he didn't tell them he'd found half a box of life savers in the trash earlier.


After months of hard work, Spencer stood before the judge again, a little grungier but infinitely prouder. "Your Honor, I've completed my service and learned a lot about responsibility—and recycling."


The judge peered over her glasses. "And what about personal growth?"


"I've learned," Spencer said, straightening his seaweed tie, "that it's not about soaking up all the glory. It's about wringing out your mistakes and being ready to absorb the next opportunity."


The courtroom erupted in applause, and the judge banged her gavel. "Well said. Your record is officially expunged, Spencer. Go forth and live as a sponge of integrity."


And so, Spencer the sponge left the courtroom not just expunged, but enlightened. He started a nonprofit to protect the oceans, proving to everyone that even the most porous among us can make a solid impact.



(This story is donated to the public domain.)





--
--
Phil Shapiro, pshapiro@his.com

He/Him/His

"Wisdom begins with wonder." - Socrates
"Learning happens thru gentleness."
"We must reinvent a future free of blinders so that we can choose from real options."  David Suzuki

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Revised Corporate Mottoes for 2025

Google: "Do no evil -- on Fridays, between 4:30 pm and 5 pm." "All your thoughts are belong to us." "One search to rule them all, and in the darkness bind them." "Google product graveyard tours start on the hour, every hour, between 8 am and 10 pm, PST. Follow the happy guides with the multicolored open umbrellas." Microsoft : "That's a nice little company you've built there. It would be a shame if something happened to it." "Your dependence is our innovation." "We'll stop supporting you when the world stops supporting us." "Please do not turn off your mind until the upgrade is completed." Apple: "For your convenience, you can now direct deposit your paycheck to the Apple Store." "Selling you back the illusion of freedom, one device at a time." "Would you like a device with your adapter? We also sell adapter for our adapters. Tesla: "As an add-on to your car pur...
Read more

The Humble Virtues of a Simple Private Jet

I have often thought that the question of how one ought to live is as perennial as the seasons, and as susceptible to overcomplication as the foliage of a tangled wood. To live deliberately, with purpose, requires discernment: a stripping away of the superfluous so that the essential may shine forth. And yet, in this age of noise and haste, we find ourselves burdened by the overornamentation of our means. I submit, dear reader, that even in the realm of private aviation—perhaps especially there—simplicity is the truest luxury. It is not the extravagance of the flight, nor the ostentation of its trappings, that speaks to the nobility of human endeavor. A gilded fuselage or a chandelier within the cabin may dazzle the senses, but they do little to elevate the spirit. Far better to have a simple, unadorned jet: one that carries us swiftly, efficiently, and humbly to where we must go. The grandeur of the journey lies not in the seat coverings or the champagne served but in the soaring per...
Read more

Unrushed

Cynthia was the proud owner and manager of a hardware store in a town of 20,000 people. Residents in town loved going to her hardware store. Cynthia had built a very loyal clientele. On a Tuesday evening, Cynthia was about to head out to a meeting about the United Nations World Food Program. Supporting this organization was one of Cynthia's passions. She had prepared a presentation for this evening and rehearsed it several times at home. Representatives of this organization were flying in from out of state, and she was eager to meet them. Just as Cynthia was packing up her things to leave the store, one of her longtime customers, Charlie, walked in, tears streaming down his face. 95 years old, Charlie's face was weathered like an old mountain rock. Between his gasping words, Cynthia could make out that Charlie's beloved dog of 15 years had died that morning. She put down her bag and went over to hug him. Unbeknown to Cynthia, her 18 year old daughter, Rachel, witnessed the ...
Read more

Affordable Housing for Billionaires

One of the thing I'm most concerned about is affordable housing for billionaires. Many of them do not have a regular paycheck. They subsist month to month on passive income that flows into their bank accounts like the Niagara River surging after an intense downpour. Many of them have no idea where their next $100 million will come from. Take a moment to look behind the facade of their lives. Underneath their gilded and sparkling trappings lie tales of uncertainty and apprehension, where maintaining an extravagant lifestyle is akin to treading a tightrope suspended over a chasm of financial instability.   Picture, if you will, the bewildering complexities of their predicament. While the rest of society frets over bills, mortgages, and making ends meet, billionaires grapple with an entirely different set of fiscal quandaries.   Their lifeblood, the passive income, ebbs and flows with the volatility of the global economy, subject to the caprices of stock markets, real estate vent...
Read more

Finding Purpose

Once upon a time, in a quiet town, there lived an elderly widower named Henry. His beloved wife had passed away twenty years ago, leaving a void in his life that seemed impossible to fill. But amidst the solitude, Henry found solace and joy in visiting the local public library. Every Saturday, he would make his way to the library, where he would spend hours immersed in the world of books. There, on his favorite couch, he would lose himself in stories and knowledge, feeling a sense of connection to the world. The library had become his sanctuary, a place where he felt a comforting presence even in the absence of his dear wife. However, Henry's Saturdays had become increasingly lonely. His aging body no longer allowed him to drive safely, and he relied on the kindness of library staff who would pick him up and drop him off at home. Despite their companionship during the car rides, he longed for more meaningful connections and a renewed purpose in his life. One Saturday, as Henry sat ...
Read more

Kindness Credit Card

Lorraine was a different kind of philanthropist. Slightly quirky and slightly goofy, she sought to achieve her philanthropic goals in creative new ways. She steered away from traditional philanthropic methods and sought to blaze new trails in the field of philanthropy. Her foundation attracted workers with a similar bold mindset. One day, at a staff meeting, she issued the following challenge to her staff. "I want to hear new ideas of how to promote kindness in society. By the end of this week, I want each of you to list five new ways our foundation can promote kindness. The best ideas will have these qualities: 1. Use a relatively small amount of money to change the behavior of large numbers of people. 2. Be quirky enough to engender a lot of press and conversation. 3. Expand upon an existing, successful idea – but take the idea in a whole new direction. 4. Bring greater financial benefits to people who are kinder. Her staff of eight buzzed with excitement at this challenge. Ever...
Read more

Yearning for a Faster Jacquard Loom

Once upon a time in a quaint village nestled in the heart of the French textile industry, there lived a young geek named Arnault. Arnault had a passion that set him apart from the other villagers—he was utterly fascinated by Jacquard looms. This intricate device, with its punch cards and weaving capabilities, captured his imagination from a young age. Arnault spent countless hours in his workshop, customizing and tweaking his Jacquard loom. He loved the challenge of enhancing its performance, making minute adjustments to improve the quality and speed of his weavings. His loom was an extension of himself, a testament to his skill and ingenuity. However, despite all his efforts, Arnault couldn't shake the desire for a faster loom. Every evening, after a long day of work, Arnault would dive into the depths of the web, scouring forums and websites dedicated to loom technology. He marveled at the advancements being made, dreaming of owning a loom that could outperform his current one. H...
Read more

Mount Everest - First Person

Stop crawling up my spine. The hubris of your species never fails to amaze me. I'm a slab of rock -- and I've got more intelligence than y'all. I'm just a mountain who wants to go to work every day and spend time with my little mountains. Stop bothering me. Just stop it. Do you think planting your little flags in my snow is some kind of profound achievement? Please. You think you're conquering me? I'm not a prize to be won. I've been here longer than you can imagine, and I'll still be here long after you're gone, whether your flag is flapping up here or not. The truth is, you're not conquering me. You're just rolling the dice with your fragile little lives. You call it a challenge. I call it foolishness. Why do you need to risk your lives to feel like you've accomplished something? Is the only way to measure your worth by the number of dangers you've dodged? Here's an idea: why don't you climb the metaphorical mountains in you...
Read more

The Unconvention Center: A Story of a City’s Creative Rebirth

In the heart of a city known for its industry and hustle, there was a quiet but growing community of artists, dreamers, and tinkerers who felt like misfits in a landscape of straight-laced skyscrapers and corporate conference rooms. These were the people who sculpted out of scrap metal, who painted murals on the sides of abandoned factories, who held poetry slams in forgotten basements and danced in alleyways under neon streetlights. They shared a common belief: the city was missing a place for ideas that didn't fit the mold—a space for the weird, the wonderful, and the unexpected. The Birth of an Idea It all started in a little café called The Wild Palette, a gathering spot for this artistic crowd. On any given day, you might find a sculptor arguing with a fashion designer about the meaning of beauty, or a puppeteer improvising a show for the regulars. One rainy afternoon, a poet named Marlo—famous for his performance pieces where he recited verses while juggling eggs—stood up on ...
Read more