Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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. ]5 s5 K  r; ]) c" S> 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
. U/ Y3 y5 I/ R& K6 I3 @> same choice?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
2 l& E$ R0 Z/ N( p. ~/ }  L: W; l> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
4 Q' ~' m) C/ S8 G  i2 [" x> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
. F0 f% T  ]6 s5 C7 S7 G1 D' k' T> staff, he offered a question:
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> '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
$ f0 k9 X. G6 P# G> natural order of things in my son?'
>
3 n, N% I/ L! Y9 f  n3 U> The audience was stilled by the query.
6 d- ]) z! a. J, S* F- i>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
4 a5 F- |* z# D4 s> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
' k% z2 P, L; B4 a$ o( t0 o* z) e% X. m> treat that child.'
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/ Y0 I  b3 m# J9 m  \! w> 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
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
" _: A  h* r' Q% M1 N1 T4 U# F> 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
/ e. F0 ?' {4 O+ @8 u. D> 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
' O3 Y1 c5 I6 U4 L> 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
3 f1 r# }2 z/ W. m> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
9 u7 q! I3 U0 `6 Q> inning.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
; O4 H% k* U, ]) ^! V" h& V8 L> 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
( p- ^1 M9 |' D; |+ q> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
/ R! [* g$ S+ J2 W> 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
7 T% {* T5 ^6 i" R> 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
  X9 U# q. P2 [( H! P/ X+ E* d$ M> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
' `/ x3 N! N3 {: w* {; V> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
7 P" k/ X% H; ~# h> next at bat.
>
> 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
. m5 P, o* G( f& r( a> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> 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
3 x- \2 h' C+ X: J( o> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
1 _! _9 p& [& G5 H2 S> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
3 L8 y  g7 S4 g> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
1 K9 F  D5 g, I4 B! Z7 ?% m> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
  K0 a% \- J* K" c. Z: _: S3 L> right back to the pitcher.
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, p6 S1 ?/ O& O, T; |( L> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
* {+ L7 }6 m' A> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
( |2 E; g$ D6 `. t> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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2 M! e/ ^0 D4 d: p- ]* x8 W> 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
, z+ p% }3 M2 W2 N& n> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
4 p$ Z3 A0 h5 z/ B+ P> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
6 G: l3 p& o/ O. ~5 E> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
& }8 F( Z2 r5 ^: W> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
" k7 Q1 l; T% C4 k9 Y" @> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
3 y2 Z' I) y& F$ J/ K8 u> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
+ r' [2 K& ]5 x; O2 n) |$ C> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
" H/ {) q' p: f4 [8 A7 D& m6 i> 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
8 x' A( B( I! V. l8 R( h> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
) G# F4 f7 P- f0 M6 B% q6 J! f> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
) T5 V% L- v) d# `! E6 a> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
! W" x- h# y1 ]2 C* u# [+ j> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
4 l$ V8 t- h" \* g  X$ ?/ i" `> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
% k, R/ ~( P2 w* ^% q> 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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2 X/ z& e. V, _9 A, h> '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'.
>
* ~/ d/ t9 [, `$ {  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
( x1 ^$ z; Q8 p' u> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
8 B$ ^1 n& m; `* A> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
  m, j  @- C8 w> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
, o, V9 ~' R$ m* }0 ]. U> 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
> '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
' p& `* A: g% x" t> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
9 ?3 B& P# Q# Z' a  r> 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
+ C1 u/ ~9 v& c" L> bit colder in the process?
>
, b* \  C+ g/ t> A wise man once said every society is judged by
( l. ^2 _4 i0 ~: |> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
6 _$ t: h7 Z. ~6 m4 t, N( V2 Z> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
' Q% [7 [& k0 b) M- i8 X4 [> May your day, be a Shay Day.