Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
3 L, V! ?- `0 V7 a: _8 K> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
> 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
5 L/ E  }( q2 v( K( B" z> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
7 L! K% @$ n3 z5 F- ~> staff, he offered a question:
>
0 i6 N4 i2 N& i# }2 P> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
4 s* M: v; l+ ^4 R2 I> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
2 J/ Z# |5 A. X; c> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
3 Y% t: i. w" b0 e8 `> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
0 ^: h# X2 b9 _4 r> 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.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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& u( s# Z0 y% ~& ~, x+ C2 Q> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
/ Z4 f1 N) {( X- t' f: \! @. |> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
6 o  O/ V. h( C> 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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& B& f) c( G; q% Q3 @> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
* H& S: }0 S* I/ x, b2 w1 i( ^> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
4 R( D" W4 g- H9 P> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
# u+ Y+ ]$ T9 S  }> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
7 D/ b: N+ j% Y/ T- a3 I% L> 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
$ F5 F: N; E3 u3 [9 y5 J( f. k> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
/ i1 Q" _3 R( H. C& C; S/ |/ z> 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
> 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
: t( z9 t& D7 v4 k# @& [> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
* M' V! ]) d: M3 f6 ?> 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
$ k2 L4 w' t5 U6 [> 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.
> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
; d1 Y) d' Q5 O$ s# q) {+ X> 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
/ u! I: \# T% g( I> right back to the pitcher.
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5 c1 g- e4 t/ j$ r5 P, G> 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
1 M# C5 s9 V7 w' w2 y> 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
0 M" h  p" f3 j. c> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
' n: ?4 z+ k; N. d# z, u0 @> 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,
  J& {" c5 {  f2 E+ V> 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
> 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
  A2 x4 @: ^; p7 R> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
7 j* A7 Q) R4 Y> 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
4 n5 d8 D0 s# p% @  F7 ^> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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4 m6 v' }3 ]2 V) d, X> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
) @* L1 ^: d8 B3 _+ o- m4 |> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
1 i; e1 h0 L. I+ j. x7 s; i4 w; Q! M> 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
0 t$ \3 s( }6 y0 y> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
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> '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'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
) Y$ Z7 m6 p( Z# X> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
8 X3 ]( {: b$ v! X> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
4 W0 d) }' b# L% q> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
0 U6 j0 |( S+ E% Q& U* B> 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
( e7 a2 M9 c+ x# `" S0 K' I> 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
: y  [! z( F+ r& q3 W# R4 o- m0 T5 T> 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
> 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
( I; Q9 v  g+ ?> 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
3 Q- I9 l8 y1 V, k, Z> bit colder in the process?
>
# Q- g) F( o; [) f' L> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
3 Q+ m. F& J1 T+ E' W> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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  g; v+ R" t- J" Q3 _* w> May your day, be a Shay Day.