Not long ago my mother sent me a letter that contained a card from a conference she had attended. In the note she said, “This card made me think of a young man I knew who was trying to pick up all the trash after a 4th of July celebration in Philadelphia.” I read the card that was inserted into the letter. Both my mothers note, and the story that was on the card brought me to tears, but made me think about why I am a Healer and a Health Coach.

                                                It made a difference to this one.

The story on the card was a abbreviated version of a longer story written by Loren Elseley. The full story is below:

“Once upon a time, there was a wise man who used to go to the ocean to do his writing. He had a habit of walking on the beach before he began his work.

One day, as he was walking along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.

As he got closer, he noticed that the figure was that of a young man, and that what he was doing was not dancing at all. The young man was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.

He came closer still and called out “Good morning! May I ask what it is that you are doing?”

The young man paused, looked up, and replied “Throwing starfish into the ocean.”

“I must ask, then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?” asked the somewhat startled wise man.

To this, the young man replied, “The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don’t throw them in, they’ll die.”

Upon hearing this, the wise man commented, “But, young man, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can’t possibly make a difference!”

At this, the young man bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, he said, “It made a difference for that one.”

This tale truly reflects my own personal feeling about my work with people. It doesn’t matter the odds, all that matters is that I can make a difference to that one person and that is enough for me.