Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> 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
9 W. B) `; c( `* K1 a9 x* e> same choice?
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+ f' R7 E! J% n) \> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
) _0 Z6 r2 e5 {> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
( ~1 e/ N& A8 {$ Q- N0 O% ?> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
( f- r' E$ H' E3 i/ e! D4 ~> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
% x  T. U% a' D" P> 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
> natural order of things in my son?'
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- w: m2 m! I" u. P/ j9 s> The audience was stilled by the query.
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1 b( h0 t$ K. g& C1 z" P> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
; w6 P  `* v' T' T" F- w> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
8 e- Z+ D( @4 f: P, ^' V> treat that child.'
: Z- o: q0 E  B# a  N/ v2 }>
> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' K$ s1 ~, s- v7 s; a+ u) R7 y4 s5 [> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
( C" F$ G8 [+ `9 q3 J) C0 t/ @> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
' ]- l& o1 l6 M8 ?4 M; }# H; \> 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
3 c, q% D+ \1 P5 g> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
2 l3 F" \! e' @, h2 K>
- m0 l. G3 K3 {6 T: v> 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
3 T+ Q, S0 F; p  ~1 |% D7 }> 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.'
>
> 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
/ C6 g0 W* t. I+ e! E> 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
> 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
> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
; W9 t3 q5 S  l* }9 i> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
4 v, n$ Q: s" L4 A) O% u6 {> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
  ]* q. y4 t6 c% e' J- \> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
; m: d, v, z5 @> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
: ^& K% B6 y4 i" z; Q> much less connect with the ball.
7 B9 w. D$ C, P: r! }> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
2 V5 [$ {% |# N) u1 T> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
4 `! e- _# a. R4 h> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
: N, S# \4 p* j. @> 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
- B8 [3 D# E: z  e& W> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
8 i$ v1 A/ M: T& ^) O> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
/ L9 M; B9 d  Q. L' [> 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
> 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,
7 e2 S# T  U1 D4 ]7 y9 o> wide-eyed and startled.
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2 J  q' e6 q/ g* b! r9 V> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
  g2 h0 x% Q8 g# \: v8 o; ^; q$ z* W> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
  s0 Y  C1 b  R> 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
" w/ z3 `$ D1 b  ^: E4 c/ Q> 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
: |& e5 ?8 S; o4 \/ a' s> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
% c7 ~7 ^: B0 U4 L# G" I' b> circled the bases toward home.
, ^0 f7 T' s! g) L1 J! C" u4 b6 S1 `>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
* ]7 K, t# z5 F. \. j) Q& Y" j>
7 m' w' x6 j0 E5 _> 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!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
3 D0 J& @+ d6 M- U> 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
) h/ Q7 [1 _# i# I' p> 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
> into this world'.
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5 x+ ]6 E( D6 M, `> 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
- E7 n% w& S& |3 P* d# v$ B# r1 g> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
. N) ?3 J' ?$ T, R7 g" H: Y> 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
7 H0 s. X2 U/ j0 k+ Y4 W& T' o5 B' f> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
8 ]  [, f% _! p" T! P> 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
. i2 \/ c( k9 L; G( J$ i7 t> '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
" p" O9 P% T; {6 `+ N2 ~> 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?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
* V1 J  U% M1 v0 o2 I> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.