Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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- j: Q1 M" i& ]8 ~2 D; N> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
4 Q. M2 f, a) b, J> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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! o" F6 T$ ?' }8 B> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
# }4 Y* M2 {! O& d> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
# z6 H# }% K$ C% d5 s: b( Q> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
6 M" f+ K0 j- B/ F9 G7 p! y# _/ Y> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
8 V( f# @/ }/ j$ m> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
5 y; e0 P" V* n> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
; {1 ?, p( j; w+ x  L" Y" S> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
" o! `' i' a/ i+ ^( F> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
  S) o7 Z+ q! y' y* _> treat that child.'
>
& e  k3 Z* z+ S) p> 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
: K  ~( h, e% M2 m7 K6 \4 V8 R> 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
, `% }) |0 Y2 b' M1 G9 m2 R> 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
* b8 }$ o0 _+ b> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
& F. J& }# ~" U; y> 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
> 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
0 w# W) _3 O+ ^1 Y) Y1 ^0 j> 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
7 c0 m/ D2 b) l/ E7 ~$ y. l> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
" ^  p, j% Q' p  k+ s> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
/ Q2 N6 ?6 e4 m8 a> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
9 H( A% C6 P* [; D+ L- n% b> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
, m0 M1 [" W) |> 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
/ V" l5 |! V* `' J" _4 o& x5 G> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
+ W" ^, A4 I8 F; I: w> 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
3 \3 p; E/ F$ @> right back to the pitcher.
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9 F9 y! t) j+ I3 W" i# s> 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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
. x  i3 ^4 N' M8 J> 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,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
) n; H$ Y7 n: P# B! z* C> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
9 o% T& W9 d3 d, L> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
0 w# j' H3 T" c. X: W; _% @> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
1 n0 }- @2 J/ {! W5 d* A4 o3 v> 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
> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
& X, |7 c" S$ ]2 ~/ q- M! O& g> 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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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
7 @! r; j6 _* E" {8 m, S> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
> 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
/ Y# e1 U4 T: @# 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
" O" C- k/ s. K9 W1 y/ _' H& \> game for his team.
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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
) \8 Z+ v: O$ Y' S7 H> '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!
>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
/ u# C8 K7 I! f8 n> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
/ X" ~! j/ R7 ]' P> 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.
>
4 o, F; w. D2 {5 A> 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
) d) q) |0 ^" P7 S( G6 b. i2 A> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
/ `1 P+ b# ~5 D0 e  T+ ^! s6 y  F> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
' Q  l5 r; Q5 v2 `1 T- @, }8 R! P> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
, O4 d* }8 J+ D) z* v. p1 `7 P> 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
9 y; [& f0 s' b' W/ Y" @> bit colder in the process?
>
, A0 n! Z( ^$ P7 G' K9 I> A wise man once said every society is judged by
% l6 q" ]! _! o6 E0 K> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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3 a: R2 V. _1 E& `6 c> You now have two choices:
: J0 i  w  `3 H> 1. Delete
8 ^( [6 ?8 D: u- u  w> 2. Forward
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0 ^; h/ U/ l2 C> May your day, be a Shay Day.