Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> 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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. X$ X6 Z1 K* C0 B$ D/ @( u> 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
( B2 S& M# _. Z# p4 ]( [/ }> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
3 g  A, u4 t% a4 C> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
$ e  h7 s) N8 s5 h> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
$ ~! X; o! w3 b, R, o) d3 r' m> 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.'
>
3 `# N4 v. e2 c' x4 d> 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
# W* F, _6 B; R1 w7 Z9 B7 v> 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
8 L- J9 r' G. T/ ~6 i> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
1 y- Y; r6 ^1 a) d: y> 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
0 t5 T) M+ ?3 y0 Y; ?> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
, `6 L: q# }1 k3 ?1 A( x1 ?  w> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
$ u, B; F1 ?) ~9 k1 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
> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
+ B. p8 e3 o' o) r: \0 a, W> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
7 E7 S0 w( U5 F* ^# D4 y- ]> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
$ j8 e/ ?- A' Z3 y8 H" c4 |; s# {> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
4 r; c3 o/ }3 |8 a6 O> 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
, R3 l# [" _) _; O4 h) y> 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
2 y2 R* u0 \( z, \$ d0 n. s> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
> 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,
> much less connect with the ball.
: Z; E) i. \" O> 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
8 J4 s% p# ~& Q" F) q> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
, ^3 F* z" N* }> 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
) [0 Q+ l6 R. e. b7 u> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
" _2 D. f# O- e% ^  m# p> 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,
6 I1 f  C3 g; m' f! i> wide-eyed and startled.
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2 w4 _) w* {. E; v: }; i6 ^2 k1 H> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
% y  r$ w% ^, J9 l9 h+ k> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
, }3 I! p. Y! Z% e9 s$ {# y> 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
' D6 {" s: T! e3 w> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
1 g5 b( }7 C1 ]& C8 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
> circled the bases toward home.
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$ Q- L  A% \. B- `& P( n> 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
0 X8 x' s: s# G0 T. p- @$ Q4 `> 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
> 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
. @) L$ h  R+ Q% a, N6 i: N8 O> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
7 O: ]- v6 W( o1 K; M" }  B> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
8 E, c; _. J3 ]; g> into this world'.
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: j$ J/ O) W& u& F+ C> 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!
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> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
4 V0 T. C0 |7 z5 Q1 ?> 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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5 i* V% \$ \& y! V4 K: u# m> 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
/ |; [# L: f! `/ a) W/ D, Y- k7 I> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
+ d4 W4 s$ _& J> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
4 C& h# b- E: F5 h  I> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
5 C& ~3 t( n2 O> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
- j2 a6 G" o$ i# ^% j7 u9 z. ^( ^( d> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
% V1 O" j; l; w" c. ]> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
0 z- D" N1 Y& M- Z% i" E> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
/ i. E% I" |/ h( b0 z- ?> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
+ @4 s! ?% i2 s; S, n5 H6 L> 1. Delete
0 l: {& g4 ?' E! V> 2. Forward
>
  O; n" ^, A+ \1 m) m- u> May your day, be a Shay Day.