Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
$ j8 d& k2 L$ V- v> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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> 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
4 y3 o: P5 d/ r5 R! o> 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
: K8 z2 s! G2 F5 y> 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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; M# J$ V- T0 Q: D% D& W8 `+ J> The audience was stilled by the query.
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& n2 F% d* W( P) v- o> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
& z6 c( b! Z* M- `> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
>
3 j" ]( T1 y7 h5 L' t- }" x1 I> 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
7 d6 x8 c! a/ ^, j. x* R2 ?> 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
0 U! @1 E& X1 K$ i> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
* j0 x% x/ o7 o> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
5 P; g# S2 A+ _; H0 K  m> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
0 F1 G' v9 i+ v" L, x0 t> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
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$ o- m2 d" Q8 \7 T3 e> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
% e2 q" ?: `! x9 m+ [- V/ {2 {> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
. d& w* p7 S2 H. e; u> 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
; a* s. D! g# g& r! e: s- B/ I7 {: q& m> 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
  T+ A/ b* W3 q; V, }1 h> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
9 `6 j) T) d7 J; I9 f% o! J> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
& q8 J: O2 ?  _$ k% A) i> next at bat.
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8 X9 J* |' f7 b. Z> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
5 `! h8 w( ?9 C7 N  v> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
- E3 Z/ i, U" k0 [> 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
* n) F: }; Q( c6 w8 S+ u> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
0 d% q9 J1 o4 e! }! T8 m> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
( }. \) _. P& Z; g6 [# }: v% F3 V( h> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
- y% b) F& |6 t1 b9 B. l$ C> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
4 D6 g6 L" G0 n* z# L> right back to the pitcher.
>
, ?, {& r3 ~' r: x> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
- Y0 F2 h1 S& j4 Q9 Z" ^- G> 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.
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. ^0 J% B! o. ^" |! H3 ]; n> 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
5 {6 H# A# t" I- ^5 z+ r) a> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
# w: \/ Z9 U6 n" I4 s  _> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
  G9 T! {" p' v1 @> 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
- d& O# Y  d2 u+ D> 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,
) i# G* E2 D  H  O4 Y) \> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
- |; t. z/ Y2 o1 Z' i0 L> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
# z2 N3 K3 s" m! _# _2 @> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
* y) Y: E* K/ C) N$ N$ \> 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
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
" H4 w* Z1 Q2 h6 U( f> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
+ w( ~( V: p) h8 I> game for his team.
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/ y  k  W" [  i9 N9 ~6 |1 P> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
- e. j6 ?5 F- u, R8 M> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
1 e' N2 {% U; W4 `. u> into this world'.
>
; w" u5 Q" T# X2 r" R7 j5 z& J  f> 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
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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/ v) {5 D' J5 Z) n> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
, R  l1 u8 e! z1 e( U$ a, U> 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
- ?1 V2 K; g0 g9 {7 M# f3 y> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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2 b  v$ S5 G' x$ L+ m2 F5 {% O& Z$ x3 c> 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
$ w5 h( t% J# \> '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
$ e- s+ L: s1 b* z> 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
8 @' K+ X9 [4 S7 n2 _' ]! i2 l% r> 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.
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> You now have two choices:
% M& o7 Q6 b$ c% w! H' O3 T> 1. Delete
& ?2 @' t+ K, b1 h> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.