Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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
+ s$ f* [& j* b> same choice?
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  F+ `9 i  n; q4 ^5 O" A> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
3 h' E2 d1 M. ~4 ?: D> 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
: N2 R# @8 q/ A> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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. H8 h% p/ K7 f> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
  k/ _* d' j# i$ t, d- n> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
( G  j2 a; ?* L5 D4 Z! r> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
) h& h+ c. `/ L6 \6 T$ q3 G> Then he told the following story:
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1 [9 U% @+ U9 E: y' n> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' H* m; _. W8 f+ ~3 i6 I> 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
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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> 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
  g( B9 Y0 H- w7 j, P> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
% A! `4 l0 H, e& N# \) H> 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
/ {7 [6 a/ N) |  k* e! ]2 ~0 R6 J> 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
( y' n* t! |; [5 ?! O! v> 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
> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
. C6 ?1 L/ h/ c2 O  y8 o4 s> 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
> 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
% u7 S- R; k! {7 h, `0 l8 H5 }> 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,
  A1 P4 V. J4 S' H0 |! a> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
( J; q' c) p* E> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
9 H) A; p7 C" T( O& F; m  \1 h$ _> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
$ I1 _1 z0 Q8 O$ ?8 L' S> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
3 G$ a% f+ V) k0 D> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
( N& N5 ^1 u# ~" c8 Z* s* k# I- K> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
3 u' c/ g( ~/ ~7 R# g; V> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
" K# i+ Y0 g7 k' m9 v9 _9 R> 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.
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2 i, c' K* h% k# \3 i> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
& l& b9 B# H& L# u; t1 i4 ^> 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
% O1 V( `1 g+ k* w, m! k% N> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
& r: C) I2 q# A  r0 T: l> 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
& [, _. ]* y" A& X2 w. z* v> 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
5 G8 S8 r% e, B+ k9 u% t! [> 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,
) k4 n& a7 d8 \/ G7 i3 O* d9 d> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
% G8 c5 M: C9 z> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
* G* `4 I- `8 N# }$ Z> circled the bases toward home.
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4 ~& h( Z9 ?( W7 @7 z& J8 r/ T> 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!
8 O9 k/ N' p% P; V5 Z4 F> Shay, run to third!'
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8 a; h# H  ^% Q% h" x4 g( ^6 C> 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
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
9 o  p1 a9 z& B9 @4 {0 L> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
8 {- o6 F, b4 G5 k- @> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
' w8 o; \0 H2 F0 y8 [+ 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
> 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
+ Z3 ]( W5 e# _, Y> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
6 \' t: K7 `6 `+ \> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
& S2 J5 b- m  J! y$ G2 q& L> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
7 p$ e8 q) W$ j7 }" v: \> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
: w2 Z9 j: R  t3 M: X& F3 S> 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
6 x+ X. N5 }+ a7 K$ X" u> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> 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
- y% V% f* D) s  B> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
>
. p5 v& m" W1 r) m> A wise man once said every society is judged by
! g/ T9 E/ I3 i+ a5 v> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
6 S" O. x  w$ ]7 L  l> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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1 z* U* W4 p, M5 H! G& B0 q! V> May your day, be a Shay Day.