Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
$ @6 G5 x( K) t) J# C" D> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
& P. l% g! Y' l* e& m> same choice?
>
7 K6 l( ~+ w4 }! o  g> 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
  N% ^- X; N2 C( \) a> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
8 P) n  W  D4 H> staff, he offered a question:
>
) E. a- _, s. {' Z> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
  |! {0 J6 E0 ]0 Y> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
& T2 F4 K3 K1 V) \> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
9 q2 d4 C+ Z) Q9 l>
! P" s3 \& N3 R/ ^. _1 ]2 \$ A% w5 @> The audience was stilled by the query.
+ D4 U/ a/ D7 ~4 \: l+ J>
4 k$ b6 }5 X4 n- d> 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
  a* }  R$ H( r3 U& F& Y/ B& a> treat that child.'
>
% D* t, b2 p8 z5 Y0 _> Then he told the following story:
>
1 `' h" T3 P/ r" p6 g, d> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
" n- r: [# `3 l1 l# r- I2 C> 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
8 z3 W+ q2 c" a1 t6 E: T, x> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
' b- b  w4 y. L* o& q> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
0 e0 M" k/ c; M1 o> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
4 \& D1 k" M4 S" D> 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.'
>
2 r% v7 g* _) A3 k( ^> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
" F: w- l" E% ^: h; q8 n# I# T( ~> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
1 ]# Y" Z7 d' K. _/ f# c> 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
% B! u  u. Z. M3 r0 O, \6 m> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
" v5 l$ ~) b. l> 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
: H  T1 X, l6 S7 t+ m6 g4 e# W> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
" q6 t8 g# O! R" J& ]$ d* V$ q> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
> 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
0 {4 G1 V" b; J/ ^  o& ~7 e; F> 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
1 J- ^; x/ w0 i' h> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
4 m- X; R" u1 {> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
3 F1 P2 ?9 }7 t7 |1 l> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
! n+ W: X, Q+ v- p$ ]/ i4 b> right back to the pitcher.
>
; ^4 W! s: a4 W+ z> 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
9 ]+ v( e3 |% _% s> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
6 _' B2 K  g. S# [; v> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
) _4 @* \  C, B/ ]! g7 U> 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
  N/ N1 A9 |9 N; k9 ]> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
1 J( B& H- z" E- W8 b  s: N> wide-eyed and startled.
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( i  w" H+ ]6 o# Y& v> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
7 u8 M4 N* d" ]> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
5 ^  Y( K/ b) f$ A- Z> 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
) z% E/ c. O8 K0 Z> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
2 q7 i8 C. Y7 X* k! f> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
5 U/ Z+ ?$ p, C( u, u0 d> 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
" O5 d8 }) j  B" y$ t> circled the bases toward home.
>
: y9 v) Z3 R9 L1 v> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
2 F# w- F4 w/ d>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
2 K4 s% x3 E- S5 v6 n7 n> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
/ B* a5 _& W% P. W, e1 B- U> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
  C& L6 F7 B8 f6 ^" O, H0 A> 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
$ M- w+ K* ~" @, o> game for his team.
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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
  j* ^$ Q9 W" p% ^' ~9 w> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
. b) x8 h' M5 Q+ X) u' l> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
3 r; g' ^7 X2 J* }$ I* e> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
/ W3 `( C% X' V  E; Q  [> 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
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
* k! B- c7 E7 C5 @7 k, @/ k> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
( m# |+ E5 s% j# z9 H> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
! n2 l& A3 {6 w3 x>
4 f8 y. r, {% t! p- E* @: I> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
. a% U( q, w3 E0 S% g/ a. q; E/ y> 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
. ^7 K4 t6 [; a) x  ~. a; 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
> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
  t9 ~0 ^0 K: J; F% }>
> You now have two choices:
( F0 |* g! q0 a> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
6 [$ I3 o, k! x8 K/ T$ p2 i0 B>
+ R) j- }' R3 o7 S2 E> May your day, be a Shay Day.