Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> 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  L1 R# _6 ~' o' e> same choice?
>
> 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
8 u: E8 N6 z, g: ]. K& S! i8 ?3 w6 |> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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) t0 H! g* c2 N( U) ?5 f> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
! c6 K) C" |7 U$ S8 ?% H> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
1 ]5 D& p( S+ R  p0 ~' g  I> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
" c$ l  @/ t0 `) O> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
( ^- r% V" Q; l3 L1 J& {4 P> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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# h- ^, m! h; Z- V5 k6 f! S- }9 L> 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
. ], a9 ^9 [. Q* Z; n0 p2 o& I> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
9 K& q7 F1 Y7 _/ l9 }: j> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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2 y! U; }2 M7 |5 [% x7 A3 }> 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
0 `7 e  ^4 T$ K% \2 H- C% h( h> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
/ w, a( E$ e4 ^% T" ]& ]# P> 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
2 r  E& v2 I% w7 H7 A. s! t  d3 d9 I/ ?> 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
/ o; d0 |5 c& ^5 \% ]9 h! ~5 l> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
% w  }" P8 |4 `% m& p> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
! e  p$ L1 y' v9 K% D$ t/ n> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
+ a& K; ]2 e* e7 u: M> 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
> 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
' p% D2 T  ?  K% B: v> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
7 M* {6 M" W* v. ^$ S1 M( A! `> much less connect with the ball.
" x5 k% }# J9 @, l> 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
/ R! [9 s5 U  |. m8 Q> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
0 c9 t. y7 S* R> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
$ o; D6 h; }& G% m' O> 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
% s* a3 y! K5 V1 j) h> right back to the pitcher.
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9 A2 |; i) e  [& ?+ r0 |4 x> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
' E, ^: [: E6 M) g: o( g# k> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
* K& N( s3 \0 K, h> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
& y( f: `2 J/ g6 f0 r# `8 a; ?> 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
, E6 M+ J9 r, F/ {. y> 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,
> 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
( G3 ^1 A0 l+ A# Y- s3 }> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
7 D1 g- I+ j0 G, H2 l> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
' H& b$ O4 O6 r3 ~" ^6 u0 d> 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
# I3 j9 X5 H& Y) x! r9 z> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
1 w6 u$ t3 |6 Z  G$ [4 m> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
! n0 z8 B) h! E6 D5 z$ O/ h> 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
( t) F& F1 U( Y5 ~% y% \+ @> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
& v( b, Z, |8 H% ~( B5 N> 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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9 M  D: G9 z$ u( U( x$ r> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
* F" @$ r# e  O) m> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
, I% v7 H5 G6 I( r& |! @; u> 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!
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% v% h$ F( |+ ^7 v' X! g> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
' z" {7 Z. |& H. H+ G. k> 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
2 E- |3 [$ F2 s& O' }# W& v+ F> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
* V. k& f( O1 X/ T8 m( b, J> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
3 c3 e  f  J3 P) s4 h+ |7 x; T1 x' m> 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
) y, c' b2 R% [- X# Y& D7 l) e> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
2 H4 h) I. s7 F& J> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
- X) F* R; b3 X  l+ R% c- x> 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?
% E  x/ i0 X5 C: c>
5 H+ l8 s* @) Q; ^" M: f/ z> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
+ {  [+ `$ d$ T6 X- ], |4 b3 Y> May your day, be a Shay Day.