Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
/ i0 W$ R1 q; \7 {+ w' L9 y+ s> 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
> same choice?
>
$ o! d1 P. d! i2 U" l$ R7 ~- a> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
: B+ v' t2 {( S6 Z' Y3 ~2 P4 @> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
2 C' P' _( l7 P8 s+ p> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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0 R0 I* l! W# u% p8 F5 a, n> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
: T0 W# \' a! B, J9 u> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
$ y0 O0 {. E: ~+ x# e# m> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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( j8 E# C; S1 y4 ~) u> The audience was stilled by the query.
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; }8 z% l" d1 P" y1 p> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
, ^- ?- h( x1 _, \8 G3 j9 \> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
& M6 X1 M7 \$ r9 {' g! m> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
6 D: C/ |, T; h+ D0 |/ @5 [5 h>
6 @6 W/ e$ g0 n/ z. u> Then he told the following story:
>
% O3 X  K& h$ S/ l/ b6 w6 ]> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
: E0 k, V/ Q. y+ Z> 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
4 w: L5 A% I: c5 w1 a$ }> 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
) N0 O1 t" q) K$ d" n5 B% T> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
  P: {3 X4 v; t2 e  P4 _. |> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
: r( n/ P1 A- v! e4 ~& T, E# o* O> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
7 H; y9 e! u$ X0 g> 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
> inning.'
>
4 r3 S& b( ]3 F> 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
0 x9 }% y+ \6 _6 [6 k/ e: k* n> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
* f2 s8 y8 \5 d> 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
- [/ Y% @9 ?' \6 G. v  y> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
0 M* P7 C" R4 o' j> 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
& J* \" N' d& O  C3 V* s> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
5 ?% `& {# i7 d7 M9 [2 \  O7 B$ U> next at bat.
>
+ z1 e9 }' Y, g0 T> 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
% ^, {5 S1 k  q+ e> 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
> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
7 T3 Q1 \' u' u/ ^> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
. ?" p5 Z. z9 j9 G$ |> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
6 o& t$ ?7 ?: S. r+ K6 T" \# K> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
" O: i; o. W# f$ m0 \> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
* P4 ]9 @) ]" u+ w" `& H> right back to the pitcher.
6 a5 x2 b' H' @0 s. s% Z- s- a>
> 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
9 x' ?5 D- W( k# ]3 c8 O4 x> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
9 J8 y% V+ @" K- E% v> 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,
! i6 q; E* h) k) _3 d" q5 t> wide-eyed and startled.
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1 V- q& g: b1 _> 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
8 W3 r/ j9 h: w$ @5 [> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
2 V7 S( S$ A/ r: _. f+ M4 B' n> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
$ G0 N: Q4 E7 C" u> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
0 D, L  n) x6 u4 W9 z> 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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! ?6 F; b& Z4 }3 r- x> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
  \  D& {% P6 T" [8 W' @>
> 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
& m8 }: o1 V2 M0 M> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
1 F9 [: q  O, v& K/ A> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
2 ^1 N  D8 G2 A+ O9 i>
. m) G# T! Q' n+ E! l/ A> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
0 u2 n# X  E, Z. l0 Y> '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
4 o7 z& U/ y( B> 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!
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> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
8 g" d3 z6 c, }7 z5 q) X7 N8 p> 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
& N: ]3 j% b( Q' L/ u> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
8 s% q9 ^, G9 `' m7 ^> 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
% P  f+ h2 D: ]0 q8 h& Y2 q> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
5 e; ~$ |* C' P# C. [% ^> 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
+ U! B+ B* f$ m+ g, h; n2 v> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
: N1 M: U" T) W, J> bit colder in the process?
: E) V  H/ h3 p( v3 p' R>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
( b5 X$ m9 q, y$ y; o5 `> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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& n( l, Y7 S: R: R& k; ^, F> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.