Sometimes obstacles get in the way  -  like for example people with a negative attitude voicing their opposition to the whole idea of undertaking a stewardship program.

They can be a real obstacle.

There’s a story told about a group of frogs looking for a new pond. They knew they had to make an effort because the old pond was drying up. As they hopped along the two leading frogs fell into a rather deep and slippery hole. As the other frogs gathered around looking down into the hole and repeatedly called out “better give up it’s hopeless you will never get out”.

The sad thing was that one frog gave up and died but the good news was that the other frog kept trying until finally he managed to hop right out over the top of the hole.

When asked why he was able to overcome what seemed impossible  he answered “even though I’m deaf I couldn’t have done it without you my friends cheering me on”.

Encouragement is a strong motivating force