Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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( Y2 A  |1 _7 O> 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
6 g4 B" I# `3 `$ Z2 N> same choice?
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9 Q8 ^; g, H; d" q7 g) O> 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
- o9 z# b& E8 X0 B& z> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
) [, V- ]' C) M" i" ?0 q' y> staff, he offered a question:
>
- m  C& r; L: d> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
3 {8 h9 s  [/ n* i) N> 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
> 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
: D6 G6 W; D, o; A% ]> 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.'
>
0 g& m, ^, \7 h8 Z/ K- m> Then he told the following story:
>
+ y- @( i$ o. U9 l( m; F> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
! f$ {! f3 B0 S: l; w0 ^> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
( t; Z$ O- }. w& H4 J# m> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
# {) x5 s9 i( R( P9 H/ A+ p% B, a: [> 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
1 h# q$ y+ c7 c9 d, K  b> 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
6 {$ |, ~$ U/ L0 W> 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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& d) y, r3 Z7 D> 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
1 l7 ]2 Y+ m- f. s& k> 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
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
. w3 b5 t3 _+ C! D> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
6 C- l' p0 s* d0 y) \* i) w> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
9 L. A. L/ m; m" F( O> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
! O# w: T+ [) Y: F: `5 s7 N7 y> 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
) E/ m0 Q! L, I: Q9 C> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
0 S( b6 l2 p' ~3 P> much less connect with the ball.
% M/ b# j" P9 T$ n# n> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
+ r9 @0 i7 m$ o  J* t> 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
! }( A+ [) S" C5 B4 [9 P* U> 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
+ c8 x! B5 t! o* N' b( i! n- t) w> right back to the pitcher.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
5 I. y' J" R% A+ d> 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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% p& O7 @4 K) d  d$ l> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
' a" S. R/ s/ e9 {9 z7 T2 w0 ^' V> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
& C" h. C2 F. M" [> 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.
>
1 w9 W* ~4 S  R' }! H; r! M/ J) a> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
+ M. \7 \+ z) t0 Y3 A, |> 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
) p7 m. u# W9 Z/ x> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
/ E" Y+ y* i+ n6 }& F) M> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
( _; u# G$ G0 \3 W> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
2 l( p* D8 [' C> 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
) A  w- T- _& U, l8 R> circled the bases toward home.
>
- |/ b- t5 J. v) f) U& [> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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1 q9 y; M9 {# n, o+ t0 M> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
2 o/ m3 g8 T; _> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
% |# q; ^7 R; Q; H) _5 [$ R! ?> 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 F- ^- j; @; C. ?7 i) G> game for his team.
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2 F2 Z$ P9 o+ L- y8 b' i8 B' `/ u1 \3 M> '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
+ |! P4 I% t+ H& u9 t5 D> 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
> 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
: ]8 r% X2 T+ ?$ x% `> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
1 P4 u- h! D, P+ K+ M6 ~> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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- G' t& [  r) \7 F- f1 z> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
7 @  X: l/ Z% O& ]6 u0 O/ E6 ^& ^! K> 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
: P( B7 ?  [6 H+ C1 e5 h> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
# x# `+ |7 `! ?0 c> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
7 ^/ i- [0 H6 \2 V" {& L> 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
8 e  t7 h1 c1 b$ y> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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% V0 Y* l9 X% }- q> You now have two choices:
: R0 ]6 e7 J' W> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.