Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
& b4 ?$ d. r9 F3 J3 v2 v- g> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
: L  m' H* Z4 k6 g> same choice?
>
3 d! S4 O* ?! x% [- n& F9 e> 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
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
/ f& `' R* B1 F+ R> staff, he offered a question:
>
! C8 x4 @1 `$ x# [> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
! t6 |: G# ]& j0 a8 K% P, K> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
5 H& P3 y4 r; {; j3 G' \> 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
6 ~0 z$ r1 E) O" B> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
3 |8 K/ [8 {+ N" u5 W+ Z) g>
* k1 \! e- O) i9 g# }& h) ]  D- @> Then he told the following story:
>
> 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
% C$ H3 G  ^1 H2 x> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
; k5 d# x. x9 a> 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
> 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
/ B# ^* x% d: X> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
& }' k5 h; L# p> inning.'
$ w; ?" Z# T% `>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
$ l9 k  h+ P2 O! }> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
8 `) k* r+ s+ J1 Z> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
) g( c5 N8 d2 @8 n3 M> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
* @+ e! `+ e3 i' T& Q! M7 B4 a> 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
* [* x2 @* _0 c0 x! c# j> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
0 V, ~: h7 U; |, b4 C% ?> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
- _0 S1 p+ X9 J% d7 y) U> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
( y8 e8 I" ?, A( b0 G) F> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
9 E% _  J- L: I2 s+ C> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
8 _8 u. W% W9 U1 I, S> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
/ ~: m, @  I! `4 N6 q: W> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
; b# Q: B8 F8 d( }/ w> 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
5 C: r% o" f/ y& l5 i> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
9 x0 t; A7 ?, Z, D9 E> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
- ?4 N6 J- {7 m) ]8 C- o> 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
0 y2 {% _/ Q' a3 B> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
5 O: n6 P' S  y+ s) C  l( g8 j" ^>
> 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,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
5 z4 `; `7 S# S3 ~- x9 g. P8 p> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
+ e7 F" j0 |9 {; ?6 x2 i) O( t2 e6 S> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
5 g( U; \: B; F. o# K* o: x  M> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
2 t" l8 F9 J( }2 I5 P; \9 s: d> 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
) ^. P4 f( d& S9 Z. |> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
8 U& b: U' P, \# W9 y>
' B/ H7 [$ X/ Z% o. ?  N> 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!
6 P, D3 m2 g+ c6 ^$ o/ w> Shay, run to third!'
, o3 v1 i7 t$ {1 }, |>
( }5 S% f- W+ E2 r> 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,
9 k7 H# R' g% F5 y3 C> '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
+ ~4 S, u$ H( G' p> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
1 c& P0 v+ B% w, I' o> 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
  B( D% e' t# m3 }/ t: p; @> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
. Y# M2 V% X1 ^> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
/ r* q3 W, R1 T/ ~, ]' }) X! g9 _> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
2 h1 X$ d0 h3 L$ R4 |/ U% n5 D% C> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
. i, U! Q2 a  E- k9 s/ f: B9 M" D> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
' N0 a9 O9 c! K5 k% T2 @7 E! n> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
; C$ F1 f. R" q4 }+ _> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
- Q/ i- O* O4 \* G> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
6 S4 d! b/ p0 ^  E: Z5 y> bit colder in the process?
2 V) ], v6 m+ p/ s1 l" W  N>
' p# `0 K. k7 V7 Y6 C$ c! O> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
$ G' h( ], _) ~  x6 J9 p$ {> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
0 i2 h" D- o+ k! U' }> May your day, be a Shay Day.