Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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7 S* n# G& a( R: e3 D( l6 @9 _> 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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/ T8 {+ q8 O" Z> 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 x- s- o: |% ?  _> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
4 v/ W( v+ F( m* H# ~8 a* M> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
) M" `0 Y/ ^3 H: u1 L* h> 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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0 I. m6 q7 f; M* K> 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
  m* `! o3 H9 `. t. h( D> treat that child.'
>
$ Y+ Q' r# Q, ^) t( V* h> Then he told the following story:
>
) z$ d* ]  d8 M' }& r& L( r/ n) B> 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
> 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,
3 G5 x) G+ z, z> 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
+ R) a; [5 y' P> 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
! {4 s9 \  Z. X5 H> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
+ k0 B/ p; y! G$ M; l2 [> 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
4 e$ ^3 H- o; W7 K/ y9 B, i> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
' X( D' _" S- M$ Z> 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
9 N9 i( h9 l6 {/ N5 {; J> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
/ i( e  e! u6 \2 Q> 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
> next at bat.
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9 y. k+ g' E0 m7 s  w' x6 z> 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,
( [& m* W! h6 H% W> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
! o0 K1 K- O" D> 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
7 Y  M- A9 [1 E& A& |, O4 q6 }> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
> 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.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
+ P6 T) u1 y2 U8 ]> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
& t% I7 }/ `9 Q  h1 k> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
. q) u4 q, D$ R7 r. {7 e  P> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
- A: F$ a- X; Q> 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
; D. r/ _, P; @> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
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0 ], H* P) A  c7 c> 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
  T6 t6 x6 T- e4 \$ }4 H> 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,
/ J& j) |# `  K  b+ G: t8 {> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
8 h4 s% K7 G3 B' D# v8 P% P> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
; i: M9 |7 P- I0 x> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
+ M! Y' v3 J- c# d% _+ w' n> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
0 a% ]# Z- r1 [0 s> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
* C/ G' C: {" X$ h% j4 D> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
6 D# g/ o: q8 l; U+ n5 Z> 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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, W5 P9 |$ G: e) @> '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'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
; g/ m, H  X) C) E( y8 O( U> 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!
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  r5 [) f& Q) u$ o> 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
, i/ T; ~  W7 W# i  Q" c> 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.
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% w- K9 s/ n& O, t- }# ^  X9 W> 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
: N  h; y: q+ E> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
3 Y/ C9 z7 Z: n, P: Z) ?> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
1 H6 Y% d, D- `7 y' k6 W, u6 s> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
5 s" }' ]) ~1 z0 Q! V0 u9 O> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
. h2 Q9 S- E1 O> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
# T$ f/ H- |( X- {9 s2 V9 A1 h> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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! G) q9 C$ q2 k4 @+ ]2 n& |> You now have two choices:
! z/ y8 r3 o& ]8 @- ?> 1. Delete
+ ^4 ?9 T% }1 h> 2. Forward
>
7 f8 q/ Y9 V4 {! l. T> May your day, be a Shay Day.