As the old man walked the beach at dawn, he noticed a young woman ahead of him picking up starfish and flinging them into the sea. Finally, catching up with the youth, he asked her why she was doing this. The answer was that the stranded starfish would die if left until the morning sun. "But the beach goes on for miles and there are millions of starfish," said the old man. "How can your efforts make a difference?" The young woman looked at the starfish in her hand, threw it safely into the waves, and said,

"It makes a difference to this one."