Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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+ z! a0 M% p. {8 [' V) ^> 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?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
3 h. M" G/ u1 ]> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
5 \8 ~3 c$ ~% j, A1 [> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
( J# c* e( m: M% I. D- r) l) ^> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> 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
/ O+ S: T; o" C! G0 p> natural order of things in my son?'
>
! a2 {! p& h. j* {# K7 Q> The audience was stilled by the query.
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6 X* E6 e& b8 N2 y+ S/ G> 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
> treat that child.'
>
" {( ?" s+ k; H# e' ]! [; B; v> Then he told the following story:
>
* c; V$ P2 ]3 e5 O! A2 T9 r4 C9 D> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' _# E8 c: Z2 y> 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
> 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
* q, E( s) T4 V7 k: q& f1 R> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
3 I9 C6 `8 F; n7 O  V# a> 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
* Z9 l# t2 p' ^> inning.'
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2 K1 g, e5 G& z6 @) k2 P> 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
, l9 U0 C" w: V! U6 a" N: Z> 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
- Z: w3 F$ \2 F! {; e! \2 O> 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
> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
8 ?5 \# O: g4 ?' s# V4 ^' ^> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
/ e2 z. s0 u8 |/ H* z- M3 o, H> next at bat.
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> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
8 Q7 L' \7 W3 U: D8 z" ]> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
+ {8 H% v, o% s  w7 A. L> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
( {8 l, @7 b$ x0 X> much less connect with the ball.
9 U9 C- Y. y0 m; k$ e4 i> 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
/ j, T$ k- I$ v7 H+ p! I3 ]# I> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
5 ^$ K3 x6 A8 d5 K  a> 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.
7 s- P7 ^! y) h) |8 X3 D> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
2 s% w! {4 I. i0 d8 e# C1 r5 ?> 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.
>
% {: R- i* g3 Y2 Y# J# K# ]> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
3 e* i$ [7 p- p2 e> 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
+ S- s' s9 }* S3 a$ f> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
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1 b, M4 t- t* ~; y$ s> 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
! s8 y) f) s8 ~; @" V> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
# D' ^0 O5 X7 L/ X> 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,
" H/ g2 I, l* m+ J> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
. @+ ~$ g6 H+ F$ F7 w> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
4 u  L' x3 f+ Y: V; h> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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8 v! L5 x$ }1 ^0 l# t$ Y, {0 s2 S% |> 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!
( G. K: O, T8 g$ V" H> 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
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
2 o3 J( L0 `. j> game for his team.
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, `" k# s1 O2 V> '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
( w% W7 C1 |+ P6 D! s  O  A> into this world'.
>
! F$ @# f- @3 {0 s: x: R( n3 H> 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
5 u; U: |1 q( a5 @> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
5 }* H9 [; V9 f% I> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
+ i1 G3 T3 C* j% f> 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
6 t5 R* F  G) X5 Y. {> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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' ]8 U- @4 v5 L. l; {5 L4 B5 @; n> 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
9 x- P. _8 F! b' u7 X> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
0 |) G4 |( N; O; P$ a4 r( H1 }> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
8 B% L" O8 f+ H6 f: h3 G> 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
> 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:
6 D* g+ Y3 \5 f8 r' T: s  S> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.