Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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* [. _# |5 j4 T( _9 D3 s> 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?
>
* B- U# N, i/ A9 M& N  [> 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
2 O+ l9 a- E; g& x2 ~+ H9 o) ]> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
3 w1 k8 t8 T, o" ^8 h/ j' L> staff, he offered a question:
>
7 f% \6 f. }$ ]0 N: `, L> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
. K/ _& b5 ~! b% x+ q> 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.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
! Z& V! D0 {, ~6 U1 q4 [> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
>
% y" V" W' F, J& i> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
. r& K! S& k" g! ?> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
8 C$ o) Z; h. E9 `4 Z; R3 E8 P  m> 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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2 k7 D' g0 u$ J5 B( z> 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
> 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
% L( z9 h7 M- C+ N+ i/ S) ~> inning.'
>
> 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
  F- V, C0 E! Y> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
8 x8 M5 \/ d; {, g/ I> 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 u& R" B  m1 v  H> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
: l7 B; J) {) z  a- M> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
3 _; S' |9 W" n> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
! H, f  Z0 n1 f/ _1 H9 v$ ?: u; U> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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* B) ~9 }$ y2 Q8 K% ]. b) b$ G> 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,
' f9 t8 g, ~9 f" |9 [> much less connect with the ball.
* c4 M. r  W. t% S( S! D> 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
; \; U$ r8 g/ E0 a5 p1 }8 H+ F> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
( p0 R8 V9 m; A8 l6 Y> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
" ]- c5 s6 l# C> 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
: w1 {1 {! b4 o- x5 h% ~: r' a7 B> right back to the pitcher.
>
- U5 y( ^/ z# s, ~, w  @. }> 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
4 W7 K, E7 f/ M; ?1 Z" K; ]> 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
, |% Y2 h. ~* f3 E> 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,
5 J+ Y( a" `" K9 ~> wide-eyed and startled.
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% o! l( a/ o' c9 ?) N2 h> 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
) ]/ a3 `0 C. O$ M) d& F> 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,
> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
* @" z2 C- @7 W% q) [) [> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
! \' E$ d8 u. M5 z7 f- T> circled the bases toward home.
>
4 B2 W8 Y0 S5 k8 h+ _1 r> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> 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!
2 K* t! H9 c( S/ V7 W% Z. _> Shay, run to third!'
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3 U5 U/ a% S0 G1 D! ]0 f. K9 i> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
  k6 L( `1 B. M> 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
) d5 D& D- W( H. q2 z6 u" o  u9 h> game for his team.
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6 B6 k. S9 c  i# u% C> '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
. P* @7 B8 ^0 C* Z> into this world'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
5 P) }$ q7 J7 r2 r> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
6 E; k# _. U6 w. q& H/ N> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
+ v0 c* p/ A* J3 |; ]> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
8 C/ [: g3 ]$ k8 V> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
' w0 l+ u3 S1 Y> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
: b; ^! L. s6 c9 r> 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
' z! [) @9 [  u1 C# s2 r. |> '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
> 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
+ e) C! o/ s8 w+ H$ F> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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; j$ I, z$ c  K, 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:
> 1. Delete
0 ~$ T! t+ W1 X# @; n, Q( U2 Z> 2. Forward
>
5 S  ?* [) J- @. v3 c> May your day, be a Shay Day.