Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
1 ]/ e7 |0 y6 h> 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?
6 d6 \! U  c8 ^% m) Y# m>
6 y) @  T  u' M# [$ @3 A> 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 C* F% W& D+ h' j> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
  s1 ~) }2 P* u2 R% W> staff, he offered a question:
>
' [; z: Q& ?5 r& ~> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
4 O" u: h9 p" p1 v4 g, `> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
8 q1 r8 n! u9 o8 p>
, `- ^& n* u) [7 }* U3 ]> The audience was stilled by the query.
5 d, p# K$ r, t: A+ Z+ h: ]. h; I. w>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
6 y) R/ N  {5 S- c$ X> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
% _, u) c3 \+ ^' l& L3 B>
: C/ G  y/ P4 A, I3 z> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
$ G( X! t6 A2 e/ }: O) z> 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.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
0 k8 W' \/ {, p, ~  H> 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.'
" @& f  v2 t( F>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
* f* U* M, Z, E8 n! P. n> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
3 o1 d6 N" E( f) T> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
+ [) |: o" T5 k) w> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
/ E( O, F$ `" \  J> 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
- j, _0 ~* G' z: }9 I) `> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
) y8 e% N/ X0 N4 v5 p> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
/ f# ^$ P/ t' Y2 m# w0 p1 c>
: r% B: G6 ?* R& p1 F' `% ^  t> 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,
> much less connect with the ball.
+ h- R1 M3 v6 {2 h& \> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
! h" k( E) l4 Y> 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
> 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.
/ D: E& P5 N4 \/ v/ s> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
4 D* a2 D% {- A( a7 G* D7 x2 [> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
5 m3 E5 @, c7 Z1 b9 [/ }> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
$ R" \" W9 g: F4 l" B> out and that would have been the end of the game.
% s4 l' _8 Q0 {, K>
7 W$ w! O' _# j, M> 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
1 s/ |, F  o7 g/ M/ |> 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,
" N, J' S" x* C) Q> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
3 E; t, j7 O+ H6 u3 N> 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
3 N9 t- |+ s# v! @/ q# X, t3 R6 A4 g> 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
' v7 T4 p6 P+ J( Y! k> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
7 S6 L' m# ~4 R! M/ u$ ]>
7 F" W( r; {: {: s$ N& U" L> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
+ E4 |- o; ?% G6 q  B> 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!'
>
5 ?* H# O- y9 G7 C4 w  Y$ E* \> 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
6 O* x( d4 M. ^, q3 S1 m> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
6 J4 Q9 ^* @# Z0 s% M. R& k7 n> 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
9 I  ^/ X- s1 I, i> into this world'.
& K" s! U0 |: |1 o>
% p7 F' x# Q4 K7 X> 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 {5 }7 E* j3 j2 W> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
" N) G) N# e  ]> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
- o' a2 s: }. d. H. S> 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
$ i: @/ y4 C% u" n9 b5 s> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
5 S: Z- P1 X2 M! a1 m. ?$ N> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
+ Y* P7 [4 I2 |> 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
# D! r% u  J8 ]& M$ P> 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
. W$ g, T) |. s  Q. X% [> 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?
' _& I3 m3 J2 ]6 A+ D# A- N>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
( ~: _$ ]3 }5 y2 ]  V>
2 R8 _0 Z0 `% E( W6 Y( z> May your day, be a Shay Day.