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?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
, Q( Q. b! y" I% I> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
' E& u6 z$ B& ?% w( ~6 ^> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
0 y( w; a# t) y6 E+ ]> 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?'
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/ K7 f$ S1 ^1 f" H3 K  E$ V3 Q> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
4 t  w5 M+ V4 [> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
, w; }6 }' R3 I& E( E> 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 p3 [8 y% u. g6 e> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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> 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
1 b  N8 u: U5 Y, _8 Y> 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.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
! i/ `  q( a( ^# B> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
: m6 Z7 ?7 A+ ]> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
* k9 {, b. \. u2 n" u> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
% K& `7 \) ~4 i& L4 P9 I> inning.'
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> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
! ~% @6 o) W$ x4 W- U> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
+ r& e1 y1 B+ R9 Z/ ]) w1 |7 ?> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
; P7 V7 T! }/ t- E> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
; i2 X! \. M& z0 W& s2 d> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
- Z+ e' c' |; h4 }3 j/ z2 V7 y> 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
4 y9 g& ?" h5 }. r2 f) `( C$ K> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
/ {% x; v: s$ K> 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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( b. g% K8 ?% Q) |$ a4 i" v5 W> 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.
6 i1 K2 l8 z3 f; o  D6 N/ L> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
) ~8 z4 \- B0 x. b> 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
( O: e3 i4 B/ ?9 T> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
) ^, x/ }" s" n% q> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
* p* y1 p9 Y! o( }4 r* X2 O> right back to the pitcher.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
$ M; ^( O; o0 m2 O> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
& n! _# H2 e: g  ^9 L> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
) y. B7 }( c; B. c' [8 A8 W, E' l$ ^> 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.
>
( c! ]4 f9 e  E7 O1 U. K7 C1 V$ p> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
  b- F. Q. ?' R4 P: W> 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
: @) V- p$ A+ r/ v> 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,
8 B0 [: w' e- q1 J$ ^> 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.
>
  K/ K$ R/ d0 e$ ^  ~, M+ r> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
" z( S2 {; G* y' f6 H> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
. O; J! {4 ~6 I5 {" B, ]; [> Shay, run to third!'
>
- P& J; u+ A. M- ]> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
* S( L8 k: D1 Y( _% Y, `% ?( c  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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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
% P% Q; `- i  J8 r# w% }( f> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
% S$ j0 G& Z  |* h, u> into this world'.
>
> 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
! U/ a! b% I5 l; K/ v" _+ `> 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
* M, l/ [7 m* m4 D* [/ G> 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
- O* @' E" l4 p0 s> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
% m/ H; w3 _  z+ l3 V> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
/ r7 u) n# E, x1 y; b>
5 i: u2 _8 B  P" y> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
> 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
+ H3 W6 o0 N7 r) ?+ L7 a+ r  q# m> 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
0 F" Y# z* {2 v" ?- i; c; {$ W  W> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
+ i8 S' u; x8 W  E/ n" M& N1 `> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
. e4 `  b! }5 N4 [> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
, w$ R3 b0 b5 K0 ^> bit colder in the process?
>
5 i1 U) w; U9 Z. p/ c- J> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
: e. M5 z7 T* O2 A6 S; x> You now have two choices:
, ]) o( ]4 n" L& ]4 U7 ?> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.