Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
' d5 v" s5 t; T8 K# B" E>
> 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
> same choice?
! L  z4 G1 h8 Q>
2 f# `% U$ q" W> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
; F1 I, S! R* Y/ A7 \' s; b2 F> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
& `( K' ~1 U+ v> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
6 M+ g3 @# [8 j: e' d6 ]> staff, he offered a question:
0 ~- e. G2 j  @) C, @8 c; ]>
5 f2 [6 G; h- a2 B- I# ?# Y> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
  G6 M, }& k' F2 x> 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
5 b; a* F1 D" |' d> natural order of things in my son?'
>
& G3 L  j9 \! @" p; h> The audience was stilled by the query.
' q$ D: K! `  Q0 @, u>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
, {& j+ e7 }7 Y> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
  H2 A1 ]8 K5 q# }& P2 m7 u% T  T>
> Then he told the following story:
; Z" B  h4 _8 Q2 O& b>
% m* T5 D) w% u; Q4 P4 t> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
% f5 a# {8 h6 i1 x+ D> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
1 R# {8 z* [) p( B> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> 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
> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
: j- o% S/ g( [# l> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
/ a0 ?$ j4 Q* |! L$ o9 Z; D> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
# D* F" C+ q8 [# q2 o  K9 z> 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
7 P1 K1 l5 `, P/ u- E> 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
* L2 t2 q1 I7 y& v> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
& c6 E/ W- h: X0 c) z3 {8 y2 [, [>
1 P* J2 g' _: P+ C* [> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
9 K. T' K4 u% B( f: U> 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,
& `0 i& g% h0 b; L% R+ \& E> much less connect with the ball.
0 O) }' c8 q2 A> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
7 y; K$ i* ^# D> 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
! ~9 N( _& V& i$ N, M& ^* e> 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.
$ @! \' |) f- f: w0 x* K0 c  r>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
1 Y, i5 S  f0 e; c: W. ?& L& z4 M+ J( \> 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.
0 c4 N+ Z4 D" g>
# ^9 c4 e8 m9 B7 L, ~. u! M> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
+ n; R) X0 I) B+ V> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
% }3 P; Y- f  ^, e5 i. R, R: q> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
1 Q  x" w4 T! ^, R2 t>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
4 I. k' K2 Z! @> 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
( r+ H* L, }) k' R> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
# w5 D7 I+ U7 P' }8 _  j- L! n- G+ W> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
0 w4 s5 `) L- k> 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
> circled the bases toward home.
>
, m" }; ]* \  w( |+ \, ^5 Y' L7 F> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
. \: y, I/ w. T' ]6 }) E>
" s' o6 H) G0 o2 W/ o2 [9 Q> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
+ b. j: M/ |1 v* K, k5 ]' w> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
9 \$ k  R% {9 F7 |>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
& R) v# F2 R4 l5 d> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
, f1 U' ?; y, c0 a- J, `> game for his team.
/ P) s4 x3 M. _9 s5 Q6 {>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
( _7 u5 x( m1 C: E> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
9 E; d% a# f7 a& o9 H2 S/ F> into this world'.
>
> 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
- O  |* S2 O+ [9 L# D6 `6 ?> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
! B0 \/ n- ~. R9 Y> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
> 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
+ r5 v& `1 y1 [; b' a>
' f2 ?6 m2 e% ]& b, c  }> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
* ?& K+ p" z( ~# X7 G8 i> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
, W7 ^; Z4 F* C$ n* N, f> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
7 m" G* M6 f! F3 W6 N> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
- s$ s; h& G6 a> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
2 X( n/ I& L0 U> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
: j' J% o* X4 W1 f+ z>
8 H) l" O/ M# W: t3 w5 C> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
6 P3 `* L8 t: r! J>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
7 [! k2 r! V, j7 n8 G6 B>
' b8 P; G4 T+ }' C> May your day, be a Shay Day.