Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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% ]1 H7 e" I/ V) P: i> 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
. L. G5 z& k1 r/ x. c* s) W/ \> 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
1 [8 d3 x# x: a2 t, p5 f> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
* N$ j# }8 q; v5 `7 N. J> 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
) q1 h% X- `* {5 I8 u3 L% `4 I$ u> natural order of things in my son?'
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' u0 O9 J/ J# k8 i0 l> The audience was stilled by the query.
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- l. o! o; y  `  m> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
0 `3 ^7 t9 O  W, F4 o/ e8 I8 U> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
- ?. z" c% }5 ^0 ~2 P> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
4 o7 A3 W, y0 M, ^3 w5 _> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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) I+ Y( @6 r2 }- @6 r+ k9 s> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
) t4 [' `* ]: F% y" B% p- G! H> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
7 d* I, N- k" Y, {) `! L# J# N> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
, |  H" a  c) O4 ?> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
3 M# z' Q; S+ Q# s& }+ a" Q> 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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> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
4 V# w) i9 I) x% H" z> 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
. ]# P- i" r& N! l! I: _> 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
> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
9 D' [( q: e( d7 p3 W6 M> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
. M4 G- s6 F$ w6 b> 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
+ K4 F; m6 t6 l' k> 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
! H! L4 Z. \+ O. f, 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
> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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4 f) B: |" R% C& D> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
: y" `# [5 ^' L) R> 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,
2 l& K+ G4 y3 [' X9 N: R> 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
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
# z0 }8 j) k; S" H) f. |0 y> 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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> 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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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! x: O3 n- f' D# Y% g. b> 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
7 u+ R/ l  A" x# i0 M> 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
, D1 r  S6 w( V1 f" X  ~> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
* j( U" R, p& D6 ~; i; l> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
) d0 H+ G  G: H% L9 C# y9 C> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
> 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,
3 p" Y8 b2 Q6 L: k4 I+ {> 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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3 b9 s, e& t8 L* @/ R+ C( o> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
4 ^' R' _2 W( D" c> 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!'
>
> 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
2 x# L5 t. Q, D# D1 G4 ~, _> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
+ a, k( y2 _# @  W9 m. {, M> game for his team.
>
% n2 t% ~  ?- W# B  F> '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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# H+ R+ ^/ h  C" n, b6 y/ ?> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
) a% l3 z4 w5 _* f" p> 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!
>
, m+ ]* \  Q+ `# b( }' n> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
$ x; A. r4 u! J+ j; ?> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
: d3 i; B  C' J4 a> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
+ h3 G7 ]5 S* `: _3 q> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
* g5 ]8 a  U2 p$ ~> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
' ~' y0 r! {, a: f2 A> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
3 p/ w9 E$ ]& l. a! W1 D0 L8 Z> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
7 p' ~3 Z  G& d. C; u6 F> 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
& R. T! O( u7 z> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
5 P2 c/ ], X7 Y7 }- g: }> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
- k) Q- F3 I% Y> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
6 N  K* z4 [1 e+ Z' C% |/ N& i7 w0 A7 d* G- V> 2. Forward
>
9 L( g  K' w) ?: c7 X6 x! Z> May your day, be a Shay Day.