Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
4 q. g; u( j& m+ B! ~2 P' M> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
' d2 c" n% A/ \> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
* T2 h# C3 ~5 e8 \; C> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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' `, p" `( q3 C> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
) g8 y3 L- h8 a) r> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
; i$ t" l8 A- p( ^> 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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3 u( U: B* e( {1 Y1 A) c2 j> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
1 w  Y) ]1 a2 D> 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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$ z/ p9 N, K+ w3 T9 T* Y" S" T+ ?> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' s7 @& O" i" C. B7 I0 K> 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,
1 ^! e. g8 G8 x% n+ t$ a* L> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
& r  R2 R" e6 P# @' W' \0 T, C> 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
8 W6 i( B/ x- J> inning.'
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) k. x7 ?% g5 z> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
& V6 }! T+ v9 C! }> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
. x1 e+ ?8 M0 @> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
& T  t* [0 A* j/ d" x7 B4 V# s> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
- f0 i5 B: j" j2 a9 `> 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
5 O; P) v" Q0 p. N> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
# T/ _1 ^2 L$ k$ C> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
) p0 ]1 d; N6 l, T4 w) q> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
$ e$ q( M4 X5 Q! t6 A  a> 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,
  \6 C) G1 Z$ F> much less connect with the ball.
4 p% E$ G$ W& \/ x6 p5 F> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
+ X7 ?2 z9 F  p. I7 t$ e2 P( C& c> 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.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
1 D/ p- V. _) n) w& H( p> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
9 M: Z3 q- ^/ z  w1 ]> 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.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> 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
: u7 K6 y$ J5 \% W; o1 Z- X% R( Q> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
% U% e. w) t2 k" K> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
$ S6 |  f) ?2 D> 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
> circled the bases toward home.
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  C/ t* x4 G2 A- r; ?/ W. X( V9 m> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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- J( g0 j+ [+ z' t. |7 }8 @> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
- d& f/ N! M* Z0 B) ^( j0 b. `> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
5 C7 a! o' E) ~> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
! B7 g( |8 b( |4 H" {+ W# G( I> 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.
>
3 k9 q7 x9 g6 k" D3 {> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
* V3 G; u* c5 r! g4 D% A# b> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
* k- _' q" M7 {- J> into this world'.
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5 z. X! Z! e# {5 O7 j0 T0 R9 p! s> 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
> 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
6 j  J$ l; D( l# }0 u5 ~. ?' z> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
0 M* V# J$ U7 `" S4 z8 R> 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.
>
$ I8 _1 ^" `; V( T& X* I( A* w> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
8 I/ U; i% o& d& h  a3 E0 V> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
: ?/ a& P- y' j% [5 ?> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
: M0 Z6 {# ]4 S3 @& ?( o" g& y> 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
> 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
> bit colder in the process?
>
# G& p! g$ @1 j4 v$ h> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
/ @' s5 \. ?  K> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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( \+ i! {0 `  l> May your day, be a Shay Day.