Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
: s/ u0 T1 ]& u6 g  E; f$ @> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
% a; Z& j; I% P! U> same choice?
>
# \' L6 x; X  P) i1 K> 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
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
' l5 _) R! P+ a. ]4 c/ J> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
, R  Y' P& |% b: y! t> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
2 _$ E) D& g5 _. J$ }7 ?> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
/ r0 }, c% b2 D- 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.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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' q' m! }1 o% a7 o9 R2 q0 x2 z' o7 v> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
% C, g5 S. ^; w/ J7 G& H- A> 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
3 z- G# L, O# e5 E> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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  f+ K, ]4 U5 j; _, p" M: v% p. Q; O> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
* h" F8 g( r# D- x" o" L> 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
1 D% t3 |6 D% L" u> inning.'
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3 W! z! d0 @, H7 |; s! y> 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
, @2 s( i5 l3 O> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
  E- X, z/ L: I; e> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
' l) d$ M) ^: ~5 O> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
' i' b) [, x- Y. Y4 c> 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
' W, C+ \& {. f: `( o/ z5 y> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
- O: U: O. t' y, g1 I7 {, E> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
6 W3 L0 v/ K1 r* r: d> 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
> 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
> 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
. g4 k4 w6 @( f7 b> 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
( _+ c9 g/ v7 W* |4 k# p+ q% q: F> right back to the pitcher.
>
' ~+ p) v! n( R, i4 w> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
4 }. j7 j  A7 B1 B. ~2 G> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
, L' U( i; V" v; k4 ?& `> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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, a# Z# o& b2 E  g4 s0 Q) k> 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
: R+ r4 G. g9 S3 G> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
- v$ \. T' T& D5 ^0 p) F' U> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
# W, ^( i" j1 X2 D% o- H% ~> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
6 z# \. S9 W' u> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
* e2 V! H5 l  q% Y5 q1 U! h> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
. N& y0 Y2 X. S> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
7 P* G# V* f  M. y# B3 S> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
5 R9 d0 J& F$ s* u2 K9 s& k> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
5 L% ~" @. N& l$ N% ]& p1 O> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
. O3 F: i1 f1 o9 L6 g: m> 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
- Q+ a6 R  u' s+ x4 r" a> 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
+ I+ e6 S% l5 q> 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
> game for his team.
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# S7 o/ w' H: L" V> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
- k" X, d: W$ M3 K: w* X> '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
, S3 I; j; M$ J8 g/ P0 S> 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
> 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
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
* ]7 s: C; L, y3 f1 l> 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
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
& X3 ~0 N; N6 Q4 j9 F& L> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
) u! H6 \1 o2 R' _) B, H& G> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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( S& H) H# E6 b4 {4 X/ ?# A7 L# L> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
+ y7 ~7 G( m, E8 A' ?> May your day, be a Shay Day.