Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
% q6 X+ y7 Z- b! j. Z> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
1 C6 y' d' N! R7 S' y> same choice?
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> 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
5 u' g" p9 ^5 C! P2 @> 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
3 D. e5 S! S# W% E3 ?> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
0 i! \' f6 Z7 ^5 @/ S6 K/ q1 I: |> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
7 r# Q. `7 {7 N6 U; N> natural order of things in my son?'
>
6 _7 ], r2 P; O4 ^> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
, Q# ]$ v- l% M! v> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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5 B5 p1 F* q# d7 D1 p: ^/ g> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
> 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
> 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.
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% e7 {: M$ y7 ~* ~. }+ u) o> 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
4 @) E2 S1 @* T! N" L) L> 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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2 l) s6 [5 C7 r1 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
> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
  x! w3 L. b1 v2 o1 {! g# u3 ~> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
* ?3 m1 S$ N% l> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
# c  O5 Q/ A5 I- h0 e; w- j> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
  C+ f7 c+ @' ~8 [8 c# }! }> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
) T( m* n1 x4 o9 o; s) p6 y6 D" J> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
  {7 k3 M; _8 X$ u+ X2 {6 J, F. }9 j> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
- t- H4 L& L8 @5 M& p# L> next at bat.
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$ i* Z3 \5 r; J7 G. L> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
, G6 J( E7 }& g) B7 q$ v% e> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
> 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
1 i/ ^4 b. ]/ M- u> 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.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
  }' r6 s  O$ a; @/ u# F> 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.
>
> 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
> 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,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
2 }' @. {5 b2 Y. 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
; S8 X& m% {1 {> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
; s4 O% t: M+ g> 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
1 N+ f# Q& l( v" r% K$ n0 `$ o> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
1 _+ K! }) Q) V* Y& m) u1 F  N  O> circled the bases toward home.
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1 q2 Q- N) u" Q# |- S1 R' x+ f> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
4 |9 s, Q5 x/ }! H2 M> 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
. y, @' w/ m( ]' `) f> game for his team.
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5 @- y4 u. y9 ], Q> '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
9 d+ `& _, M, f: }6 c> into this world'.
>
& _' G  }! ^/ D> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
" o- J: y2 Y$ j: O1 I> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
> 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
/ \9 t7 I1 Q6 w- p> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
" F+ X9 n( T) I6 e7 J. w  k) V> 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
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
6 i  {. d! C! }5 f. _& N> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
' k2 L- E6 S/ k' p: {> 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
> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
) ?. _' ~; g2 Y2 S. u% A7 L9 {9 h$ i> bit colder in the process?
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# _  u( G7 L; X2 a) w0 E9 i> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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! a2 f% h, P, s" C> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.