Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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
1 @' z) I6 J( g  {* U/ |& ~> same choice?
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> 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
0 V' s; z3 c' q# H  t' ?" U$ Q1 r> staff, he offered a question:
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6 e2 f4 Y6 k5 w0 N( ?. k> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
2 a/ O8 Y$ P9 y; g> 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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> 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
( u  o: a$ G5 e- U$ K> treat that child.'
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+ O: D1 O$ j" E3 Y> Then he told the following story:
>
/ c2 p  L2 ^' h0 L! H- S& C( Y> 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
8 l$ d7 c4 ]2 v* L4 D4 J1 `# h: Y> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
  i9 R" ?. h) @( b4 r  C* u> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
% }6 q2 G/ X2 {5 j( j# a3 b> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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> 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
4 b/ H" N0 H! h, q) h> 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
> 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
) C0 F) I. c" E# Z# g. Y: a> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
+ M: ~  V8 I/ D( i! i  G" E) m> 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
+ ]3 M; F( v, e8 _( l, D2 p> 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
> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
6 U+ f. j! e# K5 v% u" y> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
% Z. l. e8 M& u" m! N. j  ?> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
) Q1 y" h4 A( k  Q+ _> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
' Y9 M6 A" {& q  R$ B& D0 ]> 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 t$ _! G: A6 q- i4 C" M7 V> 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.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
! y0 E" W9 r! }2 A( Q> right back to the pitcher.
>
  I: Z6 v. e5 c" l8 B( E3 `4 H> 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
/ ^3 ]5 @; r& }> 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
> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
> 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.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
. v, q% W- h* G# T5 ?: D  z> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
+ Q* }% _; l5 Y  c3 v7 ?0 s> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
- D0 _! p& o6 r. [8 H- b> 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
> 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
* h! _( s! K, [" L* \: y> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
" V+ H* U5 h1 b> circled the bases toward home.
>
" C- ~! X8 q, C; k# a% N) ~> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> 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!'
>
> 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
4 @( H2 s+ B, k! q- Q+ M4 |% a> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
. R! o2 I5 I* f' y7 r% M1 n5 q! i8 T, v7 _> game for his team.
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. D* z/ n1 |& x' A> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
& K" n# w- b8 G/ U> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
3 p5 b0 v8 C0 N5 i> 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
3 h# n7 h9 z: F' d> 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
+ Y3 z! b" R3 R6 G) A" [> 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
7 t% j; k+ ^) q" K: ]; Y5 _: e) {> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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2 l3 \0 w/ u" |' W  y> 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
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
- E  ?1 E* h* l! |> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
! R/ t+ n! @9 h7 X, j> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
: P$ ^' s% v& k> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
4 L* E0 Z5 i3 k) N( \> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
8 l$ V9 a$ o: ?; A4 [/ ?3 }, Y> bit colder in the process?
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0 ?/ _9 i! c, L' Y: Q. C> A wise man once said every society is judged by
1 X  D3 C% \( B, j" b> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
( g0 Y. S6 [$ C8 H> You now have two choices:
, K+ T+ c) x1 S+ S; f> 1. Delete
, R7 p; N( M& e& N7 X- B( z> 2. Forward
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+ u5 Q2 \4 t2 r, P0 ]> May your day, be a Shay Day.