Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
0 |7 |2 Y0 ~  U7 l% f0 w, @> 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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6 {+ ^# u1 a' s1 P8 ?$ _> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
0 Z) j9 F6 |+ ^+ j5 t> 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
" C  n  }9 j% B9 M; C( e> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
- q' s/ i8 l' z3 _( R: L& G> 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
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
& g" u. i4 D/ Z/ d" e( }> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
% e2 \2 d# Z/ g" _> treat that child.'
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( b7 V. f% I# a0 Q. J5 K! K9 o> Then he told the following story:
>
' g2 U8 y- _$ g) j0 ^3 k+ D> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
/ y0 }& }! w1 D+ y4 ?5 l> 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
: ?8 y" l8 T4 H$ d> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
" @% ~+ F0 l" r" [" d. |$ w1 L> 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
> inning.'
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- j7 E2 C6 S7 r; y# M. e1 u- m  V> 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
# h! f7 ?' d" [" u> 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
& U3 j9 g. i1 @) j> 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
# W) b1 u% j3 t) n" K, y& F" k> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
> 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
! h4 h! G' o  B. f, U+ q5 j8 |; l> next at bat.
>
> 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,
7 K% n6 H3 {% Z- @0 r$ B( \> 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
( q: j/ f5 N+ D/ d8 U7 J. Z> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
8 S( E8 h, |7 ~2 F$ v+ I# K> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
3 z3 G- j6 S$ `  R% H> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
2 a3 J2 m; @9 j1 D# m+ O& M8 D> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
" T+ w1 e* Q% e% t2 j& t) @! I> right back to the pitcher.
>
, c# T, s* C; O5 p> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
& }7 V4 u2 E8 o/ a5 `8 O# F> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
9 h& |6 P1 D; D5 ?$ O> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
$ A- i3 U$ @/ l/ Z> 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.
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> 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
5 \8 t3 J5 e. [6 n, M> 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
> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
, ^) Y% t' o4 ?1 v% }6 W' ?4 r% w> 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
> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
' d% {+ ]( ]4 Q9 s' V> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
+ O- t$ l+ A6 Z, f5 m0 t) @  j> 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
> game for his team.
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> '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
3 |- M, e  X7 v4 O) W: @> 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!
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> 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
* {8 {) H3 Y) r7 r4 I; ?' ~> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
( T; E/ Q+ B$ s( X; k2 K4 B0 }> 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
! R3 u1 R. u5 r> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
4 j1 U8 O$ X) U( P> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
- V, X2 c. D2 I! P> 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
> bit colder in the process?
>
2 X, \. G# U( x$ V' h  I> 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
> 2. Forward
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5 B  n5 y$ H, s% E( k; `8 o; m> May your day, be a Shay Day.