Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
: J. N5 \: M, S" {> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
! M5 l$ k, ]3 Q  s$ D> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
0 K3 R) b( y% B. |> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
5 d2 J7 f2 i" D, O' p> 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
> natural order of things in my son?'
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8 u. Y/ w5 C. W> The audience was stilled by the query.
8 A3 ~$ i* F" d* _9 b>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
, D/ }4 r8 p% ], d3 p6 |# w> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
0 n7 J! Q5 U3 |3 p7 I- C2 o> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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  Y0 }  k& M" a: `  @> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
) p6 k4 W: y7 A) n6 E8 \> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
: _- w; |" w. h' S" J- j( f> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
6 x( Z7 O1 y) c! X3 Y$ d> 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
8 s! r" }# j4 }+ m: }! D> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
' F) D, Q, |/ D1 R> 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
- o, }6 T- |& k# Q> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
1 m6 D* [% Y; T; a> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
3 {* N# Q. Q( E( {$ c> 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
& U; D) s2 l; h. L> 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
2 X8 H/ p3 j' }! k5 p> 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
> 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
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
% Q/ ^4 x4 K3 ^* P4 |- 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
4 B6 A/ x( r/ `) m# X. F& }5 |> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
3 Y' j, z1 `- g# L; r> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
* v9 k6 b( V. I4 u$ a  I3 ~> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
' W; P6 R& o8 ^. K$ P$ Q# v/ M> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
( I8 F! B& L& h, w5 p$ G3 U. P> right back to the pitcher.
>
1 ^" N+ `, `, k1 m% N. L3 u> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
% F/ B1 v+ g$ j> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
2 T8 }& {$ O7 c! H5 ]> 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
* I: B5 ?  s/ S. \( [! k& ~> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
0 L: a/ L+ D' u# I' x> 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.
>
$ V8 Z' u, L! f> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
3 {; H+ J* {: K> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
' v/ O) ?# T- d: l! j8 t> 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
0 o8 F3 w) n' z. E7 |> 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,
$ Q+ b, k# G/ o, c# d> 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
> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
% N# M2 `" @' B3 ]> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
( \2 k6 K. N5 e% l+ ]7 Q/ R  B7 H> 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.
>
0 H& ^4 o. _2 y: b& o$ f& r/ {0 O. i> '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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> 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
$ d; X! S  f% h. G6 X1 D! k> 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
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
3 x; O, L8 K2 X& {- V( W( m8 H> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
* l; L5 i% h5 ^0 m4 n> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
8 o( d7 m& q1 l+ J; [6 u# l% B/ o> 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
) u7 z- W, ~1 |! h> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
# U, X4 ?( h7 F- a/ A6 ~> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
$ E' B3 e3 s) k; u; M# V4 m> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
; z9 U. Z0 P% y% m6 Z> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
  X+ x3 V! V* w* n$ z; T* ~> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
% k4 }+ Y$ w: C) \5 ]> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
& A6 {% p* i2 y  r$ b" ]" ?> You now have two choices:
1 O, Q$ S/ R- ~) t> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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  m% \3 s/ b1 Z> May your day, be a Shay Day.