Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
0 ]# x0 }& Q. R& {5 R> 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,
> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
; L6 x' ~" Q9 M2 S1 z( }; {> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
8 ~0 e+ ]# e' C/ P> staff, he offered a question:
5 {9 T5 ~( ?& h+ Y3 h>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
* c+ R% L8 n  j2 j3 E! w1 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?'
>
8 o8 A; z( r5 }9 h- e> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> 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
, |, h1 d" P( M7 F; {> treat that child.'
5 ]% g! J4 V( ?8 B* k" q) U8 ~9 k>
> Then he told the following story:
>
. y* d/ `3 l( Z> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
# f$ Q: @0 ]- V) f7 t4 ^> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
( \/ N4 o5 R- E/ y. ~2 J> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
6 {7 v5 K- T2 H! c0 U; }> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
' z* V( H+ w6 s! t( ?> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
, S- S8 ~$ v+ ~' b2 _9 b3 U* W> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> 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
* e, _8 Y5 H& Y$ i> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
" k$ A+ A1 P3 o1 A; f0 Y9 n> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
) e' P: x2 O6 I  W8 \4 q" ?>
> 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
* ?% t9 b' |% f! @9 |" s" F7 H3 [7 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
> 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
% I7 J& }/ F) b> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
6 N) ~* x2 S' b" z, {& X> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
, b6 z6 j7 |7 e6 o. V9 R' I9 f% G> 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.
/ B$ d0 n8 ]8 g; O% w1 f) I9 i7 j+ F>
' P$ `9 \& ]. Y+ |: r> 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
> 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
! d2 t5 k6 h( {> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
# P( a9 F, ?0 g> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
5 @; O1 O0 ?7 E, m> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
( F' z( z  S5 K  x) Z$ q7 I> right back to the pitcher.
, P, ~* `' \% z1 ~' @& [# @9 o>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
> 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
8 u9 J( v  ~1 y" V0 Q! D> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
. ?0 O) V8 T- @* h> 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,
6 W$ x! m/ f6 @> wide-eyed and startled.
>
  x8 B" L9 [' ^7 B> 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
( J6 U, ^& P' K& g8 H+ n* z> 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
1 I6 j, c  B0 v+ E" E. k> 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
( G9 N- p* r  c) v# O. o- }> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
. Q, g" W; I) X  T; b: L  D/ c>
- C  @9 `& _. \, ?! I7 j; W* [; K3 {> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
. D3 u. _& e" `+ l" `>
( ]* |& g# y& _+ K3 S& G> 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!
  K" t+ q" d- c( P> Shay, run to third!'
- C! M$ G9 p! d>
  q0 W" C  \6 a' ]6 t> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
9 y% }% k8 {% Y8 [7 c% o; a> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
* f$ _5 P" x! ~" V. t4 }, ~> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
/ d" l6 c, b7 b1 B> game for his team.
- T) F  A' J+ [1 u' }' C>
> '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'.
- `- Q  A( C$ M4 _& B4 J, o>
, {  K( h  L" a5 s( \> 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
( \. ~" h7 T3 C. A* M1 P> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
2 g0 J( A  |  w; @' j2 I/ ?" G3 b>
> 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
- T  A: [5 f9 a8 b/ a> 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
> 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
  j  a6 o$ \+ H! I> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
% j  Y7 n) T- b' U+ I0 y( K% _1 l3 r> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
% p8 ~# b6 W6 f7 S> 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
/ }1 j* x, ?2 t6 M1 [- d> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
" J; R" ^7 J9 \$ P> bit colder in the process?
8 C% e1 g3 y( x. d>
0 q* ~. @. ~- D7 }5 o> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
; C' \# w) J- J) E: W# x; b/ o' d>
1 r4 H: O# a1 u0 q" `> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.