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
> same choice?
>
4 e8 A/ O9 K4 r7 q> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
( v, f( H& b3 U8 w: x1 Q% X) P> 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
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
2 A  }6 v0 e$ T; A+ }  ]5 E7 ~> The audience was stilled by the query.
  O$ S( w& G. Y" A2 S>
- L: t) d( |, T1 Z* w2 J2 d- R> 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
> treat that child.'
7 _3 e/ q4 A4 Q7 e5 k>
  K- B; e! l; n+ z% |> 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
, y: {! E. R& a( O. d3 _> 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
( b8 w" o1 S4 i% w> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
! _! A& L2 F, c, P& H  B+ L, c/ `> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
9 G5 G( A1 v2 Y/ M! e; |/ T> 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
8 S8 \& b% T1 @3 O9 G> inning.'
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; \, K) z1 e, Y+ @) p! J3 n> 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
( V4 k0 V" E/ Q- A- E5 K- [> 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
! j$ p8 U) Y5 d+ b6 J' H> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
) R9 q( f( K  F+ \1 d> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
* _; [! \) p# I" c: C1 S7 s8 d& d> 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
- Z; N  g% ^& T4 a9 \+ X3 Z> next at bat.
>
2 b' t- g& W3 Y7 l4 t> 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,
> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
$ s' ?6 z8 ]4 v> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
# j1 d% k5 ^6 r; d! J% y> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
+ t) @; g8 r: m$ w> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
; \; t# p- _% _/ S$ t9 M3 C> right back to the pitcher.
1 [7 _8 Q. C0 L- u/ p7 r) f>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
" G5 v5 {+ Z! p8 F> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
* l3 c* w4 `' ^8 c% q* T> 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
! A2 C4 s/ [7 y6 E2 j6 K5 }> 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
7 c7 Z9 ~- S& S6 k/ F2 G> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
% B( @. u9 j: v9 h: J> 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
> 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
> 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
+ h4 _& h9 H  L; ?> circled the bases toward home.
>
4 }9 c$ q7 m* O% T& J> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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7 k5 _0 a  V9 K' f) v> 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!
% L' _7 q# j. [> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
4 Q: O* b0 A1 D7 r( n, _> 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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> '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
9 Z; r9 A" q% A6 ?3 D> into this world'.
>
( `! J2 h1 H( s9 i/ c6 `( r> 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
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
" r! U2 R9 |+ g- r8 s. {9 X> 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
* J" e! ~  n+ g2 n) S8 N" R# w>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
" P+ H6 M3 f1 ?! @> 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
# v( y3 {5 X# n, E6 a. g# t1 t% r> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
- |2 O& s# ^7 E' `9 g  f3 l+ w> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
) X2 A+ ~6 E" {3 I6 ]* }> 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
) ^' B: @0 K: A3 i0 v% Y. @; g> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
- _% c7 d2 O# i7 @1 F% x, W' Q- ~> 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
% e. s9 e7 y+ C, _8 K7 l) w/ _, C> 2. Forward
>
0 @" I: ]( G1 \) Q* L: F> May your day, be a Shay Day.