Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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
, u. m9 V+ _- c- R# |> same choice?
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6 L. }  C1 M4 _0 ]3 g8 n* t> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
4 V: V& c2 Y( X) j> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
5 |4 H+ S7 X4 G> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> 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
> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
+ N3 Y  X; K4 F9 L& T" l& O> natural order of things in my son?'
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$ _7 K$ a: f) L  |: L> The audience was stilled by the query.
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& ?2 ?( C* Z9 w2 y# E2 ^' q, P" f> 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
9 R4 _+ I" g' U! O$ C) m> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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3 e/ u3 j. |5 [- u, x* E! t> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' ^# M, w3 n0 I" n> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
$ |" ^; I! R' u6 ]0 k# U( I1 ^( i> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
$ @$ o7 k1 @0 r& X3 H3 ?& z> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
; g3 W  F: p, V0 [4 A, H> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
- W2 Z9 M! a# o9 Z> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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$ h: s" ^  T) q4 Z, `% O3 Y> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
% j: t2 Z& W! ~> 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
' ~( y  G1 B! t  K1 _6 ?0 ?- ]> 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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> 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
> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
* W/ q) s. \/ Z5 g6 F3 ^> 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
3 \( D+ \2 u6 d3 H" g- S> 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
' b' H: x1 U' G, i7 Q2 E0 k/ Q+ f> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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2 @2 f' U" J' G8 n) W> 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
' ~( b" B' F. E. i+ q9 d> 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
( i% u9 u+ L3 S% E> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
; ~2 \7 q  Y; Q: t> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
4 [9 Z" F( g) `: M1 B) _> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
  h' A3 w: K9 j> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
2 B3 y& G9 l1 C  U> right back to the pitcher.
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> 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 Y0 a5 u. O. |> 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
> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
" X% i/ y  ]. o4 B> 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,
  l  o# B4 l7 K6 a' ]. ]& i> wide-eyed and startled.
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$ e7 r" j: |; a" l4 L> 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
" ^: t0 L1 W* `+ M; ^- j> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
& F% U' }$ N0 ?( Z- @> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
3 e# m* ?3 O. `7 t; N  V> 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
. W3 u5 `& p  L3 j> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
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) c1 g0 X+ P: Z/ N1 B8 h: a> 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!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
> 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.
>
> '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
> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
( J# I' i* G0 F7 k- ?0 [6 L> 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
1 Y8 h: I" f/ l4 Q- E6 r$ n> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
! r3 d2 h4 m) C# @& G. j> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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% Q  F. a/ B5 v$ p% U% \# ^> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
: C; g. o( z5 G> 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
> 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
- ?3 {1 \/ R* p- y1 t7 P> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
; D; v7 Q( n2 b8 u2 o1 f> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
  x; S. D' H8 D+ ~1 L> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
( H2 c. h4 z% e, @8 k3 g: p) G> You now have two choices:
1 }' c5 G/ R' j; `$ d# w> 1. Delete
6 s( D, k3 [! o0 o7 C) k> 2. Forward
>
; Q- P0 @- _0 F5 C. O( E> May your day, be a Shay Day.