This is particularly important in medical environments where children can be very frightened. Imagine if you will the universe within a children's hospital as seen through the eyes of its littlest patients. It is an environment unlike what exists in the world at large-a scary place for sure. When you add to the mix the reality that children often have to undergo treatments that they cannot fully understand and that it can feel to them that things are happening against their own wishes, this can be a recipe for despair. There are many wonderful people in hospitals who do everything they can to minimize the fear, anxiety, and trauma that can result from necessary medical procedures, but this isn't always enough to alleviate children's suffering. A story that has stayed with me for many years is the story of an 18 year old boy that I met in a children's hospital. His parents brought him to a workshop I was conducting on the benefits of touch and massage. He had been hospitalized as an infant for nearly three years and ever since was very apprehensive to be touched by anyone. His parents were deeply concerned that this would scar him for the rest of his life. I explained the importance of touching respectfully, asking permission, and only working in ways that the recipient was completely comfortable with. I also showed a little hand massage demonstration. After the demonstration, the young man came up to me and asked if I would teach him the strokes that I was doing on his hand. I gently took his hand and began to do some simple massage techniques. As his parents watched on behind him, I saw tears in their eyes. It had been so long since he had allowed anyone to touch him. Trauma can leave deep imprints on our psyche and our body. Imprints that can last a life time if we don't actively seek out healing therapies and ways to release suffering. It is for this reason that we are doing everything we can to bring a wide range of healing therapies to children with special needs and their families. We all deserve opportunities for lasting healing. Healing is unique in that it lives beyond curing and fixing and touches us in deep and sometimes inexplicable ways. It is through this process that we gain new insights and depth and are able to make meaning of our suffering.