Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
) C- l; b7 Q+ j/ O" a% \. L6 ~> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
# n: e) m  G/ J> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
- u& O+ A8 L) Y& S> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
3 M$ V6 S% J& y- P6 K> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
3 c. a. Z' J: v* j2 r. r8 l> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
  Y, e9 w% m4 v3 V1 [, |' K& X> staff, he offered a question:
>
4 j+ v# n6 J) g9 g1 E1 \& j1 S* l6 O& f" r> '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?'
( F$ w+ l5 Q! G. g>
4 m& M' E- f; L1 ^> The audience was stilled by the query.
9 J$ F: K7 _3 ]>
> 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
6 Y, z% N: X6 B7 A& M+ i$ Z8 t$ z' s* ?> treat that child.'
3 z% G0 J7 T& s6 Z/ T! H( S9 i>
> 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
# B9 c  G2 p& R, V> 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,
. d# A5 d# a! f, z6 e9 ]. O3 y> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
+ M0 `) c0 O0 d* g/ `. V> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
8 a( O* t3 X' q1 G>
5 X- ~" {9 w8 m- x  T3 Y  e+ L" E& f> 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
> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
% x8 ?5 d( G. F7 G- ^* n$ i>
> 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
- Q: j. A/ [) Y8 q> 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
$ |! J* X0 Y. F" L( Z. P0 \/ r  O> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
; y& R2 M- K5 O9 t, |/ w2 v3 X> 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
$ u# n- i4 C: @> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
- X: z  B3 y  w: w! ~5 u> next at bat.
& B; R) c, H' G9 \% z4 A1 v>
# @+ e0 @% s1 g> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
; A4 }& Y- S2 s+ [( |8 n( q> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
: `- k6 l! ?9 u4 i( K& ~# s> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
1 ?- w; Q0 J9 Q9 Z5 w0 h  ~> much less connect with the ball.
9 k! f- c( l& w# P6 v> 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
  [7 u% x; S  ^; S; ]7 O4 T> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
9 ^* j, z  d# M2 U% T" }+ ~> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
4 h: b! `$ c  J1 Z5 i: A> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
4 o7 u3 q* S, E0 J4 V9 @> right back to the pitcher.
>
> 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.
' G1 y+ R. Y5 F) `  ~>
> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
4 ^+ S9 N4 _+ h6 ^: ?> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
  J: U( l2 O( ?2 e' U9 o> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
! F  s% P7 U/ E; a> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
( h3 `6 ~6 c6 {" |. N9 D>
> 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
) m$ @0 l8 n' {1 J! k> 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
; \! |3 g2 @- i4 q, J> circled the bases toward home.
% L( W2 o" ]1 H( h/ b0 x! q4 b>
/ I" r8 r% |$ O) S  A> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
+ v) g5 _) F3 a+ x5 Y) |7 d>
> 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!'
3 n1 g8 }' y& ?# s>
> 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
2 Z0 O& J! K* i$ D4 g3 p. k4 Y3 N> into this world'.
>
, F2 d9 r! r- H2 R> 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
$ l: T6 f) ~3 W7 K: K5 h> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
7 _" B' H6 i* J7 r# p1 t# j>
1 |" Q  a: l' H0 _> 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
6 d; R/ o9 R% E8 G5 X! A  [) ?) @> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> 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
! i; C: ^. x4 v7 T- I> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
9 o# x- w7 e; S; {6 Z! B1 d> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
+ H- S0 J0 }: _0 E* v8 J9 c> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
- l! l( E. K, P. @. q% e> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
% n+ f9 s  a. R" ^5 O1 m$ t& H>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
3 z3 K$ e* K3 f( H8 ?$ h> You now have two choices:
0 ~7 a6 d8 O( i6 k> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.