Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> 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
, a( r$ x8 ~4 P7 M/ y8 `6 L, c> same choice?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
/ U4 m" H; o; ]  Z& I> 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 R: B( j5 h. u> staff, he offered a question:
: [3 L3 Q% ~; b6 {>
4 C' X5 Y3 i+ y+ v$ `4 i' X> '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
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
, E+ X9 F( Z& m. \  V> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> 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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" L4 h0 I4 I$ V1 F3 n, P> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
> 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,
" I( `% i5 \  T) z2 m' ~/ L$ t> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
4 j" ^4 Z! S2 y* S: g  j2 u>
5 f' v8 G- x' I2 d5 Y2 q3 U' C> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
: \! o+ v( E! t/ O- V8 w> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
. v& p1 J$ B+ F5 M& c> 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
7 ?6 y7 |1 B: W> inning.'
>
> 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
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
3 j" b8 |8 D7 B3 r- t2 ?7 r' 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
1 Z( @" H; i. j' Y& f> 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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> 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
, J. D  p& T( V  V> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
9 |# W* y/ t5 ^5 Z, ^6 G9 a) Y> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
6 r/ Y: [: n$ M. p8 }, G1 E' h> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
% ?; l8 P4 Y1 |3 M/ Z> 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
3 b3 c& a( E7 P5 t> right back to the pitcher.
>
! Z5 |/ l. g  F> 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
4 b. E$ h0 b+ R" c( A> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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7 O  w. n5 L0 j9 k/ t: i! G+ C> 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
# t* F+ P9 l5 w; {> 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
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
: x  }% W% Z" y. v% M. M$ ]> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
. r4 K3 M+ d5 [> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
& O; o& q% H' U1 `6 q8 v> 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,
0 v( R, T6 y2 H) }6 e3 h> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
: A# Q/ Q/ D7 q* t  P- Z> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
> 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
> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
6 J7 D+ V' V& ~* P3 U- f> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
, V3 ?7 C/ \/ o5 M' d/ q. x> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
" g/ q- w2 [  ?* ~0 L: G" S> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
( c; D0 k* d3 b9 c> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
& S* y. N4 y- F. a& T8 m# Y3 Z/ y> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
" H. d: u; Y% }" h' l8 ^> into this world'.
>
4 H, F+ t9 Q4 ?/ f, h: k" ]( J# V, d> 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
  i0 b- w- C0 w! u> 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
4 H8 A6 b! e3 _  o" m> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
4 E. ~- r$ @$ `  U>
- `2 f5 e- \- j' ~2 S$ p8 A> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
$ R3 F1 @5 M# S, c# Z- K> 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 ^7 M4 m6 x. [9 r> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
9 q% T$ o# K* _% s) G> 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
7 G: p% @. s' a+ j6 a: r% H1 A- j> 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
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
: Z2 o( i0 r/ G7 b$ Z; W  m>
8 G- u( ?( c1 n1 ]- G- \> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.