Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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8 d; F! [2 Q9 Q> 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
$ M0 T/ l$ _4 @3 N> same choice?
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# I) Q' ^0 M9 d6 B; a( R8 }> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
( i- U- B3 F! E> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
3 V0 J, x/ _5 }5 [> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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- z8 O1 i, d. c4 ~! i> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
3 i$ M; f, Y/ F% k> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
. E  u4 N1 h9 V3 y> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
; c0 M4 Z' P! ~, T' g$ x6 q! O; `> natural order of things in my son?'
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9 M! R+ f7 s' X7 J+ F. j> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
! k; ^6 G: X1 z* k0 h% P; |1 H> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
/ o$ X  V! G' u0 n( O> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
. k. q9 _4 |8 w# T% K# X> treat that child.'
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) Z: J: m9 H5 x( g> 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
0 h7 }2 K% B1 b2 k. b8 D+ i> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
3 Q0 C6 F) N' x- G> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
+ D8 k0 a6 J8 f5 P& P. _4 {> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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# ]  ?1 l! i" Z# a: i+ P> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
) v: E" k. U  t> 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
> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> 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
> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
( a) x' K$ }# b5 G4 M> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
% I- k4 q7 T) a6 b> 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
> 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
- x' a- h/ t, q8 A& r> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
: H; o" {, u# p1 r> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
# C* g7 l; f7 U' r> next at bat.
>
" K6 V5 J9 P6 d% g9 t( U2 g, l* @+ i> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
) p! w0 X0 A% x2 x/ l/ Q2 W/ Q% R0 K> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
; E4 A" i6 X0 J, \- e9 ?* M% _; Y> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
" z) _) v9 }" J> much less connect with the ball.
! B2 ], w1 y. d% a# c, K> 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
> 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.
& {: ~. G3 g* w8 {> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
) j% w* r& P7 X* f: O1 \, h> right back to the pitcher.
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: C3 w8 s4 Y/ S* ]6 Z> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
% a! f6 Z6 W8 E& T& M- z> 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.
>
> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
, n% r2 I; w, N3 m2 k. d# H2 v3 d; [> 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,
; u$ n+ d" U- a  B, G0 S> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
; a9 F) t0 V. ]9 k> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
6 ~# c8 p* z8 n% `  C> 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
6 f" e2 g; }# Z1 f> 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,
" K: v4 v$ N  e9 @> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
/ A+ g8 e) O; c: J+ ?> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
* ]1 K3 K5 r9 t) q# J8 d> circled the bases toward home.
>
. t9 h9 [. W/ I; N, M9 q( w> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> 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!'
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: P. o# l! ^% s> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
. ~! F6 D  x- j" y$ J& U6 s/ B> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
* O5 F2 @- Z6 y7 _% p. P  u2 J2 q6 \+ e> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
& X" m/ c9 ^2 i5 A9 w> 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
> into this world'.
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0 }9 q8 x3 m, L+ m) C4 h. a> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
  A1 Y2 Z9 k3 ^+ k5 s& }- c( S7 L> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
: P# g; [1 w) F# s' X' x> 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
5 z+ @1 r  J1 ]1 m2 v> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
6 Y, Y# `$ q7 W* g, D: x  @> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
- X$ Q# n$ |1 t  u' Y; B) d' ~> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
# R- ~, L" l: ]3 y> 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
> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
/ }& i. E; S& V4 p> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> 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:
/ h/ G2 @& f; `8 j, R0 ~& z> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
' P7 p; U! K: A7 G4 ^9 I/ e> May your day, be a Shay Day.