Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
7 [3 l( s5 h+ G  F, ~> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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% Y) g; x! `5 k6 {/ S> 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
' B) f( F/ y; |$ h) n; I> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
0 O& a8 T! H6 U# P  {> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
7 C$ {& B) q3 k- J* I) a> 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
3 v3 ~5 }& a8 P1 E  O! s- o( u2 D> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> 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:
>
" K. G" B7 i1 ~/ \# u* y: }4 K> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
- P# c6 `! x. a( J* [8 p3 X% ]3 l> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
+ L8 F! {$ w$ `! H, G> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
! L# e9 d  R, z> 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
> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
7 v( c# R! }) e& I: K> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
- K7 Q  d7 ?: S5 i3 E& Z# S, E( O> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
- V6 P: D8 o0 J- Q! e% H9 T> inning.'
>
1 a$ O. S* K4 x1 B> 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
1 G# u( ^: E% p+ n> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
6 y7 m/ }: o/ t# N* }$ j> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
+ }: q6 s+ i' i& ^! S! [( [> 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
2 P% Q' [3 o/ G3 ]# [9 i; L> 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
) `( ^- C# u% d4 K6 w; X> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
8 f* s/ b& j- n2 f& {4 N: u# d> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
8 _+ ~; `5 Q- Y5 C! q  U> next at bat.
>
. {/ {: w) F" D3 I/ {& A> 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
. d; E. v" H! ]> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
2 J9 E/ L, v8 M; m. z" C; Y7 ^> much less connect with the ball.
0 Y% W, f) S( j' r# J( H> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
' j7 B8 e% o8 D7 H) w> 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.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
9 l# E5 r, h3 P> 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.
>
( j! c- _4 J. z> 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; n& {( x+ c. ]6 T5 y> 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,
( S2 {! m5 {/ t# m) Q> wide-eyed and startled.
>
. ^' I0 `- Q5 B% _; 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
> 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
> 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,
1 Z; l! Z: H2 T4 e6 m% a+ [2 r2 j/ y9 n> 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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> 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!
7 L7 e7 J, B. z& N& z> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
4 u# v9 H. y0 K! i> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
( \, s& j# _1 U> game for his team.
>
, y; A1 t" U+ X+ \2 ~" q5 I  F> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
+ `* Q& @2 |% b2 L: F2 _> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
. M( h: M7 p5 L! `" b- J  H> into this world'.
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9 M. a( q3 A4 ~) ?0 O0 k> 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
& f/ ]. y: L, ?) n% k> 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
" b, Y# ^. a* \. y* }5 ~> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
+ M- H4 |5 _- W* a' F> 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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) T2 i4 Y* Y- b7 f  g* i> 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
: C( U, L& K2 ^% A8 W7 F2 n& r$ R9 D> '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
( E' s  i* q, u9 T9 ]) J> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
$ \! q0 `2 x2 ~9 f+ d. x4 E> 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
> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
4 O6 @5 F8 K# N0 X1 }  {! l> 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.
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; {/ k% o7 ^# P; F> You now have two choices:
# e3 m% N/ B! G) g7 v& G> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
" J- O* l6 ?  `# t3 ?! f  r> May your day, be a Shay Day.