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
> same choice?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
2 ?8 f1 B2 E  a# R& U5 {> 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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* E4 u+ ]2 ^! j> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
: Q' S3 B6 v# k9 J# V6 T4 Z: S> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
. u' ]; x" C4 K3 V> 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
' j4 q" R3 Q, n5 }> treat that child.'
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- ]6 g- |& R: m; s: X# c> 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
> 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,
0 b  `+ ~; ^1 J' |& m> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
' O( Z2 Q5 @8 V2 j3 Z> 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
> 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.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
' K3 u/ |/ q$ J3 u& k) h0 @> 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
9 S/ Y; P9 m) z1 |8 e+ Q. a> 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
9 s' a# f5 k2 T- c7 F) M> 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
4 t( ]% d5 Q( A> 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
$ @4 S3 |, H  @: h> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
* J& b. `4 Y! q> next at bat.
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* B2 t* a3 ?) ?$ B" Z> 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,
/ Y4 D$ g5 g' N' z2 ]9 Y+ v% l) x> 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
0 v' m. G: Y' z% l: u> 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
) Q3 T  h1 ~3 z% C* }+ i% x- K> 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
* w4 U5 [' b8 i$ l> right back to the pitcher.
>
> 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.
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> 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,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
9 p$ l$ \( E! F6 W$ d* q5 Q> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
. k3 c0 n7 j; E7 T9 B3 G( _> 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
( O2 E1 a) ^$ G> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
> 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.
>
* |* ]* T) D  C+ R6 Y% x9 l> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
2 \: T2 a4 M5 z7 y* ^1 r/ |> 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
1 {5 C3 V4 E1 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
> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
> '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
0 Q) g+ [5 w/ x$ a+ r> 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!
>
4 m& h# ?6 ^# `2 J> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
- p% J' n/ _( {# K> 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
" ]  ]# L" `+ N8 R> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
" E: c" o, }+ `0 w6 `> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> 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
8 ]& n3 I% c; p) R8 c0 a! m> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
8 l& p, G2 \* R4 k* I& L, [> 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
. L  @. S/ N+ R" R- L8 ~> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
* a2 g* N  s5 O> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
>
- ^) ]. e; M/ w5 Q, ~# }7 q5 s. t) \5 b> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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3 a, w; R+ u1 O  ?7 [> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
! a6 U/ ~" x$ F1 Q  j" u" C> May your day, be a Shay Day.