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
- E, Z) z4 \0 C5 C% |/ T> same choice?
>
* M* m+ T' l- V& J  m8 U3 A  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
% I' c: @3 F* [8 O$ a- x> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
( e$ T0 B; c+ s* k+ |' ~/ e; T' u> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
; d# d/ v( X' I5 B* T6 J( q> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
- u. ]6 S$ B. F! `. [> The audience was stilled by the query.
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9 v8 W2 [& b* z1 R) r" q> 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
> treat that child.'
>
% F5 N2 i6 H  ]( ~) z" g2 G0 ]( v> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
) a7 D! }+ |) O- P9 P, ]# J* V> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
  J# Q5 C& ^* q> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
; u! V  Q1 `$ ^( c> 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
+ r% p% U3 O- W, ~3 x> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
* y6 x, G0 F/ |> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
6 ^0 d! `( U9 K. C/ Z> 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
0 z3 V+ ]- ?4 K$ D) s  K> 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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' d6 q/ c' X/ Q> 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
> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
6 D( F0 Y2 a1 J( B+ e> 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
1 a) z/ j. [- G- @$ p0 _; A& B$ T> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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> 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
, h5 R  A% k( h0 y2 Q> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
" |/ b0 P& L. u. p/ M8 P2 Z* 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
# E2 I0 P3 f6 v% ?; ~> 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.
9 E2 F! Q/ h1 z  d> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
. @6 {+ Z5 P! j  f+ u> right back to the pitcher.
>
" Z7 E0 Q8 X( L' H5 h$ S3 ]> 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
> 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
- P0 u9 Z6 i7 C* Q! `> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
# A+ \3 D) k1 D- [8 z9 g> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
: O3 ~- F' D# n2 ?8 h> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
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, `! e; u9 E) K% I& T7 W0 @/ J> 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
> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
2 H2 E* P' P) r5 h: d> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
) P% P4 B! d4 t; D  @8 S# U' }> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
! r0 n2 {# h' _5 L4 {5 S7 U, c$ x> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
+ _1 G$ V6 I/ x' j: Y$ K> circled the bases toward home.
>
( l( t0 y. d) p( V> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
( M* Z( f8 Z2 r2 p4 O> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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& u* R9 P0 x* [$ j  C( M2 D6 y/ j> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
  t# s- V9 `/ O> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
" {4 ~3 k% t1 J$ y% r: o" Q! L0 \> 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
> into this world'.
; S4 }; X. K) F. `>
> 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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1 q* h- k$ M6 H" ?' U6 c  z> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
4 p9 {. M, d; b9 G> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
! \- k7 L6 B1 Z# r  E> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
. I1 M1 Q. d% _! e! q> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
/ E+ y! \# G0 l( |> 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
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
' E$ x. T+ \# j5 F$ H> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
( Z* p! o1 f3 u4 U* z; f. q$ v> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
0 x+ z2 p. W3 \( D6 O! f7 z> 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
8 E. p& k2 s- b! n0 h> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
' y$ c! y4 h( @* _( b9 d/ Q' P> May your day, be a Shay Day.