Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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- E* j/ j: ^' ^5 W$ w; }4 n6 c$ h. h8 @> 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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) o4 R3 h" X- S' Z+ I> 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 A3 @' [* F6 v7 c9 z9 _9 s> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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' T5 g4 S% b6 F/ [2 Q' y' `5 j" h> '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
- @. R, A) ^! p: g* |> natural order of things in my son?'
>
+ w' y' _- ^2 ?5 R> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
1 R5 J' F1 y; B1 L9 g1 o> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
4 {5 k- p( s& l0 l' a> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
- W: U6 v) t5 N3 R! d" E( J  i, c& m> treat that child.'
>
) x% U. b7 L. ~> Then he told the following story:
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7 U! u. J% }1 z% b, }. m# P> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
. U; M3 X# b. j7 e2 p8 h" C$ S1 y> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
; h: @( E" r5 m> 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,
6 ^1 ~( s. W' }7 v1 Q$ i1 j> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
. w; d4 a- o6 H> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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3 r, d; V2 t& V- i> 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
> 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
# V5 U7 m! K+ P" |/ H/ H8 V> inning.'
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> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
- i) A1 r; @5 ^1 v' G> 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
> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
" n9 a- h4 F. N: p+ M! u4 N  U. ?* T> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
, }* h$ O5 c5 M# {% z$ R> 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
/ e1 g: g3 B3 A; ~  a7 N> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
; e# i: x, R& c, S0 p% T0 H+ C  e9 |5 c> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
/ i1 A' o/ Z# e) {2 o> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 e) `, L$ I/ o, v6 M> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
; b) p* W3 Z- M% \5 R> 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,
. w) V; u2 B1 [* ^> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
. K: u" i, _4 W1 n% m& d> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
" I; F5 Y) D0 J( s8 Y> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
7 {- \- y0 T9 ~0 O> 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.
/ j3 r" B0 G8 c6 v( V3 j; g5 w) s& c+ ^> 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 c% W' S" L2 ?6 {7 G> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
' A0 Q9 K5 D# ~" S& r, R, Z> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
9 f& W! [% C" t/ Y3 f2 j* }. k* D> 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.
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, W; |. i' g. v9 D> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
5 w, k4 w/ i1 A0 G2 y: P; H> 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
> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
* s1 _: h6 [8 Z8 c8 p) v3 t: j> 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
- o1 |2 }1 H9 X# u' @! `> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
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% J3 {/ p- V' J( n: H> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> 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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> 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
1 F5 i6 }" b0 m/ u- g7 J  Y> game for his team.
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% l* }2 F- I! V) W> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
. E$ r9 W5 _* O- _+ m8 F. q> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
! v9 g. F4 A" `. n: I> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
% H$ I. C  e/ \; e4 ?> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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/ S3 Y7 Q8 T! Y6 z) ~> 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
% a* Y5 I: o: v+ J2 h9 r> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
4 t& U" u5 @' E  f' W> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
$ R% p  c( a& H# q( W0 J/ ~3 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
* h8 @. u& u& K( E! |: D- y> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
0 C$ u) e, G( [( k> 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
0 w2 k, u( h' ~( z> 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:
2 `! e! f: d, o$ X9 L; p0 T> 1. Delete
' B+ b) Y  f- I* {; B' \> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.