Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
! A7 V' d- Z2 F> 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
% O7 G. ^9 M2 i: L> 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
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
1 G/ U* X7 o+ f) c> staff, he offered a question:
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# ^$ U/ X, I# }8 z2 i, e. T+ O9 d; E> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> 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
: r5 [6 m0 U8 G8 p> natural order of things in my son?'
>
9 O9 `. s5 e  t> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
8 Q; [# I' z( ~! @7 |> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
- i3 s1 p% E, j# z> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
, S4 G; a, f7 I" ~> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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+ e" H$ O  ~; w, s. K& N8 }> Then he told the following story:
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9 ]$ N/ o& [/ B( \> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
% N+ `) f9 S  i+ E> 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
* }- O0 M/ W2 O> 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.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
6 K8 c2 c4 F' C; [* p$ ?> 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
8 |& i9 @, H9 l' A- e3 D: t' ^/ y> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
" d3 q- n5 |( T' a5 d/ T> inning.'
>
4 K( [: B. L. E5 t5 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
> 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
4 b3 R# f; s/ s- S/ l# C> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
7 O6 a2 h8 x- _4 ]/ l  ]> 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
, g% z  c: q  _  w9 I> 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
2 A, v$ x( a! S$ S8 i+ |4 s! ]> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 i" m5 V. Y6 \# D9 ^2 m! A( T> 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
% R) q: Z1 p3 G" r( w5 l> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
/ p% P% w4 s: H, @0 I9 Z> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
0 J! s6 u) h8 r/ E, @+ ^' P+ T> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
, I7 n8 \$ i3 S% H9 Z* a6 t+ d> 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.
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3 P+ @4 G" D0 X' x9 p6 h8 c> 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.
>
% W2 n$ N" I8 Z4 W! ~! N, m" L' \9 x> 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
" H8 F% e( @( W> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
% m% w9 u! W# ]2 M. a) Z! k> wide-eyed and startled.
>
0 _* l5 k7 x6 f> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
* x% r. j, s' F0 u- m3 U> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
" @9 V5 m( G" c' |! _4 q- `> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
% t6 p/ x& H( ?: ]& v> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
0 F, Z* P! K1 D1 l( a" J4 k> 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
4 s" s; _$ G; y; `3 o+ u$ b" E> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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- n( _7 c  I. V> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
- |8 Z2 q1 i( I( K2 \2 K; j8 c> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
' z8 r" v' r! k5 ?, C> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
0 W9 O. q4 U( i& C/ T; A/ ~7 f> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
6 N' {- ]0 @- W+ j4 v> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
2 Z) p- _1 t. o9 q> game for his team.
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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
8 L& J% _1 y/ ~! H+ C> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
2 B0 K! `5 a# a( D; p& _> into this world'.
>
> 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
1 W$ r: J0 [/ a% p4 m' \> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
  J: f1 ~1 A! t3 f> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
7 o- b3 K: u" q$ H) t> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
/ U8 D/ {% x7 \6 b6 t' d> 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.
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) V/ ^: w8 u$ h: l$ }> 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
/ S1 l# Z  ], ]/ [. E# v2 Q& j> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
  N& ^$ a0 U" Y3 C6 q, z> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
4 }7 n2 D5 \0 i  W$ d2 F> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
' b9 M0 I) }) o* @3 q9 f7 N> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
7 k% c3 |2 {) F1 G2 W5 q> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
6 t' w7 q" Y# C+ P> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
) A1 w# L- f( a5 ~# y# r> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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8 P  f/ O6 O0 ?; l3 x3 C> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
" q2 I6 x8 e( R0 _. L$ G> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.