Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
; }: C" J( g1 o> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
& c9 Q- e& I0 o1 ?& ^> 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
: ?8 [  p7 o: v) u4 T> 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
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
; `2 `+ V6 k( z: i> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
6 B: A  E* y. U! V0 h# l> natural order of things in my son?'
/ U0 F7 A3 A. ^; }, M% Q7 V) T>
: z$ o3 l% b+ I. d  A> The audience was stilled by the query.
  Z! |, Q, S% i5 O4 l" l5 \2 F& o>
# g5 L3 G: v5 K> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
; ~8 _/ z+ E9 m" W. U> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
4 m/ N& T$ H( b% z> treat that child.'
>
% _7 O/ x' V6 W& J0 n: r6 d& H> Then he told the following story:
/ i4 {4 |( \# u! U>
2 E: i. A5 z7 l( `> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
: @( |3 D6 Y  B> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
1 R- N( W+ u0 ^) K4 E0 @> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
. A6 \: I* F8 z4 L> 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
1 t0 x  h& Q( ^% v8 u> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
. t8 n8 @* m, R; I: s>
8 U; ~+ V  e- L2 M$ i! _> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
* e1 a- Z0 D5 A  q> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
+ H' i9 p/ }4 ?0 d* X- h* l> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
5 m2 o& p5 S4 x: E# ~" O> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
) O; |  \6 H7 s. U- \* T> 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
6 K, i+ E* Q7 P# V, }" Y7 r  K4 q> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
- n9 h9 ^5 Q& o( D) Z> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
- h5 P) }* B" k! P- N> 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
0 h& _/ a4 j' B- r* v0 t3 D> 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
> 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
- H8 l1 }8 M, P' x- m0 ^# W> next at bat.
>
> 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
' {2 B- l# ~# X" t, ^1 G> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
4 ~* U6 }  y0 l, X! _) y> 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 b8 k/ j: X2 k( N  Q" i> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
6 b7 B' `' ^9 ]$ `% D> 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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
" d* ?1 ]( G& o5 @9 A2 E>
& U# G$ S" f! p- a% _> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
, {8 _: X- r! i3 }4 y+ i> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
7 j9 w% Y# O7 S" d2 a3 k> 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.
8 E. P- u6 J" h' m( y>
& M4 L: a* b( X! ^/ A( R" L; _4 }> 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
> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
5 A, k/ j$ p  O% n; e> 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,
> 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.
>
( ?; _6 `, ]3 G  ~: b> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
( e/ [/ U! N! V) L1 E6 `>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
" M5 t- }9 G, u/ |9 B. T> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
* z3 ~; M4 L* e> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
3 s# J: V7 i( H# p5 O' _> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
2 v# g/ l$ R! b! `% f> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
: U+ H3 C' M  _  c# f3 b7 `2 [2 j> game for his team.
>
> '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'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
1 U) t) x: h2 ]; f7 ?( u> 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!
>
9 A% H9 j1 `; d" T# g> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
% G* f& b) d. U; f% a> 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
! i/ s9 \# c1 R; r4 q2 P3 J- ~: a> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
# b- Q9 s5 n" f# q> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
/ G* V8 Y' ?* W& L> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
: Q. J) C  c5 [# _' A! E> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
7 M0 M, Z2 d& [0 z. ^# l1 R> '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
3 _* i' W8 [+ c> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
, V) ?. J  Z" P, A> 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?
% Y8 _$ X% Q% z; V  z( n>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
2 T+ F, E6 C- H9 p9 x5 I, x> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
6 z8 d1 b% C& P6 |* c>
> You now have two choices:
# ^0 r9 t7 I9 N2 j> 1. Delete
& I; J3 p) Q1 m2 }& f' \1 v% s> 2. Forward
>
9 t: K8 _0 D3 d" O  j( i> May your day, be a Shay Day.