Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
- F6 o0 Y6 }+ ]> 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,
! O: J8 ^  K0 \8 N# p. W> 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
: L4 m9 l( ~8 q3 n* k3 j> staff, he offered a question:
>
- w, p& v$ A7 U: _; b> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> 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
+ D( Z* h7 u, [, o4 o> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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$ K) x, }+ h! l! b0 R> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
0 i4 f4 C: J" Q6 v8 ~4 N7 K> 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.'
>
> 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
1 k; t2 C7 ]( o" U) G! {  l> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
3 O+ j0 T( s8 D: x> 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.
>
> 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
1 r. a9 }: q( i. }& H> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
! V1 ]7 X4 |5 w, T> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
8 ]" }4 v/ f7 c9 A/ ~& \> 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
3 \& p( A7 t/ B5 S+ H> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
. A8 K: @4 l2 d4 _> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
. @  d; M& Q4 I0 m, S> 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
4 U) G! y/ F6 p/ A( {9 v3 M) s> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
; C7 t. |$ T; P" o5 {9 |8 E$ h> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
" i/ `9 C7 C. [1 @> 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
! c2 M& F. b* Y; j> next at bat.
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3 v0 a& r3 _( O* {> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
7 H: d0 l$ v' Q6 B7 t) G1 z> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
+ d- ?) E8 i0 ^) G3 \; l> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
* X8 U" o* B% c5 K6 s3 X# U% D% H> much less connect with the ball.
  w* s( o+ }( X, R% w6 J, g6 J8 ]> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
/ h; b& j2 ]! z; N> 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
/ d/ z6 {6 ]) t: b" R4 P> 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
> right back to the pitcher.
>
: m$ p" q: j1 z! {4 B9 O> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
3 @6 F# }9 ?2 ~( q/ n$ r9 {2 }> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
2 V9 T( S' @( o- L> 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
> 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
: ?7 D, o4 l7 n* b1 R) P& s+ `# t> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
6 k& y4 `' B% J; T+ g* r> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
) F7 S9 [7 K7 L1 h> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
9 Y2 |$ p. N( h9 J> 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
- @0 C8 j* M# k' A! B6 v$ r> 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
# R  |+ l/ S$ [9 T* M% C3 r/ @> circled the bases toward home.
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> 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
; B& m, A9 q8 `! E> 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
+ S; Q. e& V6 ^* s% M2 j7 B> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
# }: H/ [8 t0 E4 A; @& O2 }0 n! B> 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,
6 a" }- h; P* t8 z- ~> '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!
>
8 a  u; |2 \; r" o" [5 E1 `! ^2 U2 y> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
& V" q8 j, t: N/ S1 D$ q% j> 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
6 W$ L8 I$ T2 o8 g" P+ l> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
3 ?5 i; q% j6 L) O% a6 t> 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
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
- V3 T; ?+ W! s8 S2 j> 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
> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
: G7 j0 q2 e$ |4 e: ~4 a> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
% [+ s* d7 n. O! E  R> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
& |- X$ B7 S6 g: m> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
7 J8 X* K! [  |8 }- O1 m> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.