Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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, H! L3 B2 Q$ d6 ^0 \( n) _> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
7 e- |1 A, H4 U! Q; a> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
1 R2 W$ g. q/ u1 X6 d" }  v> same choice?
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3 C; f, }% y* Y6 {> 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
7 z, [+ x0 X* w! |; q; e> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
( _7 B/ z* [* t% Q- l0 E. E3 O> 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?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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# g* s7 H0 a& W0 m> 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.'
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> Then he told the following story:
>
- T8 L! Z5 b3 d. S> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
6 r9 l4 o# ^- H- u3 N* j> 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,
7 K  j' H: J% y( [  r+ U> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
! b4 E# k2 S! x5 [  d> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
* C* m' w5 Y3 m# o* ]4 B: T> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
- A& x  N+ q$ z. u/ W1 ?) r; }: D> 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
* R! g" u; B0 \- s& ]> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
3 ?9 y9 `* C# _5 x3 m>
, ^; z; m$ L& P> 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
8 e, p+ X% q; e) M: z: Q> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
2 n9 l4 L9 A+ ~# _0 {) I+ n8 w0 d> 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
# c) P$ Z* {: B3 o6 U  M> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
, Y8 t8 V5 W, |, S! W9 i> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
) F; D; q: g( L0 O! B  G$ ?> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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6 {( {, n4 A# D- o( ]> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
; C; a  S1 H. e; T9 ?> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
1 v( _  a8 L8 `> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
7 N$ k( \' c7 |2 U8 C/ L1 }> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
" ^8 A% J: n( w* X3 `> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
, O' ?- T# n9 h6 `" Y> 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
# S7 o% e0 a2 e  o6 {5 z> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
5 h( W- n$ ?1 l) ]7 d> 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
2 O' f6 ^2 k8 C6 m3 q" i( a> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
8 F0 p( H1 W1 R9 l  ?> 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
( n' v7 j5 K4 d$ s> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
' [; H1 J0 a1 Z$ [> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
1 `1 U2 U" N1 s! e5 L; |> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
$ k5 ^- V6 n* d% e; u. k- j> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
1 i4 v  R' o4 V: U, d) G) [: [: }1 D> 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
: W  T8 B: _2 [4 W! u> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
  }) c6 t/ ]# N: z% J) f: o* G> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
" J# x8 L7 A) m' `' j0 `> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
* Y* l# M# b2 W: p- R; B> Shay, run to third!'
>
5 ]. m( O+ {, K: r9 c> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
; B2 R, S4 C) K9 S1 e  q# X$ @> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
- ?; k4 j7 w4 e  w$ e> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
- L- ?% E7 n9 s> game for his team.
>
3 w4 P8 U* A) C: U; O' j! r) |% n> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
& @7 _% F) V. E: U) ~! K1 l> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
+ U% {8 N0 H* F> into this world'.
>
/ r. t! E! r7 e9 e0 s8 R; T> 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!
>
> 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
  x4 s5 v, a* t, D+ d; g7 q/ e> 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.
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- |3 h( t( g- Z& r; `7 _> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
7 x( q) ~* v( W> 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
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
4 Y% u# O/ J; ^  ?  `) I> 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
> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
& V! W# a4 d  h$ V2 q0 Y2 @* o' w> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
, b2 X; Z. Z% `3 q0 E1 F2 i3 r7 D> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.