Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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1 Z7 l3 v/ g4 L7 ?3 ]> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
7 n: P$ x8 W5 X> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
+ z  i6 L2 _/ S* G; b> same choice?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
# @# [- t" f) e- Y> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
$ w: w3 i; o/ y7 ?1 ?& J> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
: f$ l2 t& p: w> 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
; ~2 Z( N; I  A( W! M7 i  Z' Z4 {> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
/ ^2 ~! i4 R- O/ t1 q( u7 w$ z2 D> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
7 j) W- r0 J1 P> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
8 S. n- X/ C; I> 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:
>
4 Q- h9 X) ^4 ?4 `+ z: q" w7 Y% A8 J> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
! f; P" v4 N( A( B! N> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
3 @, ^& f, O9 D! O- Y! I> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
; }. l( g9 `$ R' B4 b3 ]! T> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
5 f; l3 e" Q. O$ ^. @> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
. Z/ x. c( E7 m& q- b3 P7 G6 c, B> 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
> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
! x6 i: q" k. {% w* q> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
4 ^6 x; N  ?5 X8 p* i' [% F  w6 R> 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
! H- p7 d3 M# K. `3 ]% f1 ]0 F> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
, p" u1 F$ Q) y  J+ r> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
% k" l, z1 p4 Q' b+ z% i, x> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
6 h8 u3 d( e4 J9 m! T  {" m> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
: S2 g5 r) z0 |# t> 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
( O& }7 N  F, h* s; a> 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.
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> 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
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
! F5 Z7 l4 W+ [' J) h> 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
: A- }; B; a, b/ f> 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
. {; f/ G0 b$ d% R$ H+ @' z. s> 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.
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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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
' C8 Y5 T7 O, `1 e7 o9 x> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
! z9 k: O  x% g1 H0 C> 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
4 O8 o6 q8 M+ T# b3 u( P5 s> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
, D2 t9 v8 ^2 x) k> wide-eyed and startled.
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. m( _: C. E& l: P  N' G9 Y> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
* a; Z. h% K2 j> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
) R/ u: v7 z/ }4 ~9 s> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
4 }7 |" c3 G% ?. O1 G- I( X> 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.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
1 O3 l7 k3 c4 K) b. h> 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
. ?8 _7 d+ ^: _/ U8 o& x: Q" u> 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
> game for his team.
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' L+ B1 i$ l5 d+ v5 j) d2 |> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
- z4 g7 L& w( P; k' y* @/ [> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
3 M# Y) ?- }3 |) H+ C" r, R> 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
6 b: C3 w$ |$ E4 }> 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
9 h( \! [( ^) q4 m+ k6 J> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
  s4 T# c+ Y. @7 j! t' [( u, c> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
$ F% ^8 W  p) V1 Q9 |$ b. e! Z> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
0 i/ y1 @. i3 l> 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
+ G! A, L* f/ Y, ^. K$ {> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
* e! M, I5 Q( `6 q2 H0 M> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
; B$ f: t! p0 @0 ?# N5 m& g> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
. z% f! J9 B4 G- K> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
+ W! T( V; w* w5 W> bit colder in the process?
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$ E# y7 u; ?: n9 `> A wise man once said every society is judged by
3 P! m& ^! M: R3 U% H> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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) R- {, u+ C* x* d% s8 g/ @> You now have two choices:
8 p. L4 X4 m. u9 ~1 M> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
( I8 j0 T, l# z- }  C; B6 A! h# r, s> May your day, be a Shay Day.