Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
; V/ p% B0 A. g7 u' [& U$ a! \> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
4 W2 B0 j& Z* W7 R% I) X6 U  w> same choice?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
4 t3 g9 _( i. A1 b( P, {8 w- b> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
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3 T% ]9 P4 k% r: P& p' A> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
1 ~( U* ~4 b8 j1 T/ E& I> 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
  I- m% G6 R% r! j9 D; H; l> natural order of things in my son?'
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0 L. n7 B  G" p6 z- }* V  g> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
* s- ?$ p4 i4 J6 Z1 r) Q> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
( X: i/ v4 ]6 E3 l7 }$ f> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
4 j3 j) r' d8 u( r3 j# N+ z( \> 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,
9 G& }+ ~2 {  B8 r6 a6 X# L> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
4 T* o* Z& G' K' y6 \> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
/ B& G6 O0 A# j' A: p> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
+ S. L/ E, x1 I- u6 r> 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. x# ]' _* J% ~8 f> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
6 P3 c" C. o, L9 {2 {) |0 N# ]. `> inning.'
>
/ I  F5 J# W7 d$ Z> 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
' I  t6 J0 O' g4 T) q4 n> 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
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
$ g1 l9 j# X4 L( o) e# l> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
4 e5 @5 j6 i$ V: @  G$ @> 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
4 l5 U7 G4 x/ j! v* l> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
4 n8 M- r; P+ l" L. E( }( D> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
- l( u! i) X! [; S4 t) x/ c: {  C> next at bat.
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  K& d, O4 t' `8 B2 Y$ c" _6 z' u> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
9 Z& C: V2 N' K# B> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
& }5 C( Z; R" z$ X- {' e9 F> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
' c: V) l/ r# O4 h  Z> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
% [: k3 q* G( l) {9 E- D. J% m6 \> 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
/ W$ A  g) U; x8 B! F> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
: T. M( b9 s$ g! o8 _& a; J4 a> 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
/ P% m+ ~# V5 R0 p5 Y> right back to the pitcher.
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> 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
! p" y. b: A1 X/ \" A7 k> 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
/ g# Q" y$ W  i3 m8 P# ~( n> 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,
. y. b3 t4 c+ S> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
' y' {$ U1 F  [5 `3 i> 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
> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
6 @7 z5 O0 C* `; e% j7 |, \# M> 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
> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
* }' E8 V. A2 w> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
: f; N* ?9 I/ W. D> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
5 L: }' ]. T" F2 y6 Q1 R> Shay, run to third!'
7 `/ H3 t. L# h0 l/ B( E3 p" C/ k>
> 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
$ W+ J* Q+ e, Z% F$ v3 |> 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
( x" H& w9 q$ a! }" R6 A> into this world'.
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9 H- N! [: B! @> 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
* ?0 Q( `* p' C- o, V> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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% u( ^* j9 w, t+ n0 L> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
* V" s# w' n; F> 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
+ \7 I/ D! i/ K' x; t9 x! u> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
1 q6 P! V. s, J> 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
4 i% t( J7 r9 \3 ~1 f% ~/ S> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
' A7 v0 |* i  F& {8 d> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
! Y0 R  `/ O2 O0 a0 }# p6 e> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
3 V) ^/ ~3 I1 [1 P> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
5 b  K) n/ w5 b$ S4 c' W> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
4 N# a' J7 c0 J3 O9 U' n> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.