Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
, P. ?3 I' ?( l$ D" @- R> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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. B: P5 A2 s# B6 g3 }0 J> 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
/ p) G! ^6 ^3 Y> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
5 B/ [9 s! K5 C7 K6 ?8 _/ O/ I> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
' S( m6 r# C( J$ `> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
! E5 ~2 C' E6 R/ `9 m" Y- O2 ^> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
* G% `" A% @$ [& `$ T( k6 O> natural order of things in my son?'
>
8 E" ?) [$ ^2 w% N$ t2 x> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
* a! G9 B, Z) @& b, T> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
/ A/ r3 F) v4 c% e> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
1 u: L2 g0 z4 |> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
! o3 S4 I8 i& N( ~> 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
2 m: L& s% t) {3 E2 q> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
1 h: M  Y7 Y3 R2 g* |> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
) e8 l2 ]& k( x+ `> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
, V; c% c8 E& V0 g' `$ M1 `6 c> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
  w: @* H. I8 b$ c" F> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
; Q: f  O. |, t% ], i) v# J5 {> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
- p: W9 f( i( E6 M; {+ T> 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.'
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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
> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
  g" H( E* }0 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
6 E6 H; I/ f! d9 E  `> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
9 k. z7 `" ]- @, Q> 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
> 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,
% K0 o+ y0 }) K/ {' f> 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
2 I9 A7 ~/ A. L9 Z1 O% y( D> 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.
8 n4 P" i0 f1 M8 y0 V> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
+ @0 A% N& s! j" [7 i! s& O' S> 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
1 H, ?  e+ r5 O( T! `/ g> 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.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
+ n6 G& u0 H) c, d( Q6 c> 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 p0 H; R4 l8 S8 w> 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,
- y9 I) v7 }$ P3 V, H, a> 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.
>
> 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
5 n5 r3 N" l  e. @# [> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
0 h( k. T. h1 X: z5 R; {, o7 |> 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 W+ F( W% z; v9 J3 P' i> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
) A0 ?3 j7 _. _! y, k5 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
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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+ @% _, j- J3 @, ?/ W> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
3 q: j, |, [9 j4 U> 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.
>
> 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
/ @7 N# p% b* `7 f> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
5 e; a5 P+ _, F% j5 W: e> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
! i1 q$ W6 L. G$ a8 I> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
5 X8 p- q1 y/ s' O& o/ M0 N> 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
" Z0 H, {; K2 b3 D' b4 h; W> bit colder in the process?
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8 d+ E4 c1 h) [0 ~> A wise man once said every society is judged by
) x2 \, ]: G0 S/ \) A> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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3 v5 m5 d4 B2 V4 e5 K) E> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.