Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
2 U$ D! w2 [' s2 b. [9 G: 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?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
: ]* k! ]1 p/ r" a: L> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
3 M, ~, W# e! E; d0 U> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
8 N5 i% i6 G+ |( I> staff, he offered a question:
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" f2 Y; I" j8 |> '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?'
>
; I' J7 R0 W. Z4 N' N0 g& t2 ~> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
! s$ u$ n; M" u( y8 L9 D5 X+ z: V> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
- w/ V! \' x- x! r) o0 e> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
+ t9 X! h6 [+ Y  \9 [> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
: `) a9 @9 V( I9 ]/ K7 C. A% R> treat that child.'
>
( h0 _& @/ j2 y/ F0 z- N/ v7 @> Then he told the following story:
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> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
" p& S; }, u$ a) m> 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
. E5 g+ \3 ~* S  V; D4 q5 @> 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
> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
6 G# Q- N9 h6 U1 L3 G3 c8 V6 [> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
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> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
4 i* P$ B0 B; V) a0 C> 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
* w4 r' R! z1 q$ a> 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
" Z2 |5 E& K* a; n> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
$ V* \5 T" ~$ ^> 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
( c: D, Y& Z; r> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
6 |0 R3 P) H: |8 l  z- ^% g) O# U> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
- h- r, ]+ \: R> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
, o! M: Q/ R% ?6 N3 f8 e> much less connect with the ball.
+ |- o7 W. r; g* g6 `> 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
2 A/ x/ t) B" G+ q% g> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
# s& F' G/ T) z+ J& s; Z> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
3 P2 G& w- F  x9 V  M4 b% ?' `> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
, ^0 d) ^; C: W> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
' ]2 L& ~- r* g* H> 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.
>
> 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
5 n% ~$ _+ l9 e1 l+ A- W3 B( q> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
: _4 Q* n2 z+ }- U6 F; l$ r3 t> wide-eyed and startled.
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# \4 p% N5 z$ g; C0 g: V0 s> 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
4 |. G$ n: H7 M# O> 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,
: N# ^$ {% }' Y% ]1 K9 `$ l# D> 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
! W4 Q) Q' {6 g- b, K& Y- d> 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!
- b" O0 t8 L3 ?( A+ B> Shay, run to third!'
>
6 B& o2 ~' @1 U& n/ s+ _+ T. }> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
* v# e2 K' T6 X2 ]7 e5 i> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
" s+ W# t4 O- m/ x> game for his team.
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  V, x: ~0 g8 h' Q. T) r1 j( }  \> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
: g7 Q. @- _7 g. R% _; |% {& j> '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
> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
6 N# U9 T. @0 C* L> 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
& v/ l: f# m9 P2 {# W7 i> 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
% |0 Z1 x5 c# H' t- k0 b2 }> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
1 ^' q9 Y! Z- N- Y% K- t3 c> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
1 V$ w& s9 M: D/ g> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
) D, p# W. [  O+ K8 w> 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
& w/ ~6 o, c, j* D> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
( D' V: V/ j$ d6 m* J0 }6 c> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
' e, n2 t0 n7 j( ]> 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
6 [* X1 w1 L1 S5 d, \> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
2 i* S& ]) ?6 V( V& ~> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
: J/ C/ J' b' \> May your day, be a Shay Day.