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
$ x# J( O/ d0 F5 _0 {1 d8 o# W$ m  d> 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
: a' b5 e: X6 H> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
9 F8 q3 Y: e5 @( t1 h' I" f> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
& [/ W5 w: R. W9 {2 q> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
! w, S, C1 X+ a8 A* o> The audience was stilled by the query.
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# C9 a/ k4 Q2 W9 U6 ~1 V4 G2 {( {3 ?> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
* ~  O& Q  ]7 [2 K& t) S4 t1 z> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
: ]1 L7 C  t# j> treat that child.'
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, d3 E1 o) P7 }" a2 w9 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
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
% ?- ?/ [4 T/ H2 a( z6 @> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
: p8 G+ ~1 G# d  I; P# ~> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
" F  x3 F( \, Y( B> 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
3 |) Q6 Q+ [5 G1 O3 @8 e> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
! N# Y" L/ Q' o> 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
9 x/ e  Z7 e. T* a7 D4 Y> 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
> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
  R4 r- j9 a( [# m# S> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
3 Z) w3 s0 c& }: c> 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
( q* Y6 ]9 L( G* J' N> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
3 H4 C  {3 e# E$ [8 Q6 \' x; B, v, n> next at bat.
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$ V5 g1 [* Z9 x# K2 M> 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.
: D+ U# N' [3 A) a> 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
/ I1 {( l1 |- _. V( z7 d: w% C> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
$ Q5 Y; m+ S( R> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
2 `" F! e0 k" C2 X> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
/ `7 c- P- w  e7 Z$ C) Z9 O> right back to the pitcher.
>
9 t6 U4 S. X3 y  A0 @9 L> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
: ]* a, p) e: X6 @1 s1 z> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
) `  B* p0 c/ z9 q! Y! E> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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> 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
> 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.
>
, z. D  D( `6 {+ P3 @3 }; x> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
) M* w% s5 }: u3 D( ]# R; p* {> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
1 s) I; F! H9 q0 U> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
5 v8 k3 B* V2 j4 `4 `" ^. D3 |) ?( J> 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
; H) Y' V  F2 F1 y> circled the bases toward home.
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+ |! Q6 N, _, X" g; }> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
" i: `% `1 d2 N1 }5 K* [> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
5 ~( U" P" F  d9 B- q% H> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
1 U# `5 r( M7 m' |3 K8 r3 M0 N> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
+ I0 H1 F2 s6 ?> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
2 d+ f+ i8 c: c6 W7 B6 ]> 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
- \7 q' C; y( T> into this world'.
2 h: W2 i' G2 z5 Y5 `8 n5 E5 O>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
" l* j$ M- d4 g  Q. b> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
- ?7 l+ }4 {& \5 v5 f> 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
" f7 X" d7 R1 ?. g# w> 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
3 M( c# l* X: {5 i. R. d- b+ i> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
) w* N; t0 J0 u+ o) b> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
3 ^" W3 @$ v+ ~9 ]> 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
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
, P! {$ L; j/ M( Z4 h3 D& U" Z> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
2 A: L3 Q' X0 j% @' `9 A> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
# o7 N" i- y/ l2 d: C> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
6 E2 g2 c- |' l+ a8 N! _> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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+ y( @' b2 E9 K# M> You now have two choices:
! w" c; j# _* L4 Y3 k> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.