Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
, P, S+ H$ q; h9 f> same choice?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
" O( b9 N1 R' X; x8 a> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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# p/ O: e. q" R: ^8 R$ E> The audience was stilled by the query.
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6 e  {+ J; n# l* l> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
- t6 N5 [7 J3 X! I> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
3 W6 p/ c- Y4 c* n2 P$ a- B; x+ d> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
>
( D: S" p3 O0 F% I% ]9 p4 T) }8 i> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
2 W% m5 P' X. O% G+ s& J> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
8 r5 T! R8 v0 A7 |> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
$ L$ {. i7 X; c; q> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
* r2 e8 I( H8 D+ ~+ V# E> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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! h* X5 x0 o' h4 I, ?. D2 F7 {8 t3 h> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
3 K3 c9 M0 {* s> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
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> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
8 `0 {1 s8 Q9 z6 @" e8 ]& g8 X> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
2 A: }  T+ M# l" {5 z0 E) q> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
, T) I# ]! x1 Z2 G/ V> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
( z  A% k4 }6 J" `3 ~1 G) h> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
# w7 y: {  P- s. K> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
; o: _2 r8 j$ p) ^> next at bat.
>
1 z$ D$ ~: X: a6 r" a) |1 S! l> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
; i  f5 @! Z; f  O6 @. ~9 d" k' a4 F> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
1 w, N" H2 i. s7 [% u> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
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" T5 B+ r# ]. W' ~0 r9 Q) o> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
/ l4 U; u8 o, U; W, S/ K: j2 M0 Z- k> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
: B  @1 g  F) V> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
1 z# `) i+ d! c& \/ g% d> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
, A! O. C* |; v3 p$ J. ]> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
2 [4 T* E3 D! q7 v> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
( F. Y! q, S5 P- V. {" H. \> circled the bases toward home.
>
$ l( h, k( {* k' W> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
: H$ C8 j( c4 M% B1 \1 ?> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
5 G& s" A6 ^( R& j( D> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
4 Z9 i# q* v* |7 m$ h* @> game for his team.
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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
+ @' l5 W9 _1 t4 `3 X* G> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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; Y: j% n3 ]! v( G> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
' |1 N% {& a- l0 P2 [> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
2 F' l( D( f' Z3 Z. W5 e> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
# ~( k$ {; b. o! `> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
4 a$ F( W/ v* e: b. a1 u+ R# {> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
# y: _8 R" Q) _> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
+ W' V7 U) s) g* a) ?: }> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
" |1 h( W, P: U' r+ N4 d3 B> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
+ k( x  E0 f. K/ v. h' u; R" k> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
  c' `# L- j5 v3 A3 a0 `: }> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.