Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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,
- i8 e, n$ {  P> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
7 D$ a) o+ C& O( N5 v# N3 m7 E6 G> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
: [" w/ M1 N( x% R0 n: F" k( j> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
6 s7 v, U1 l+ B1 ]$ S  @> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> 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
2 m7 G: O6 _7 k' G: o7 w+ s> treat that child.'
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& k* `$ L- C+ ]& S0 U1 b> Then he told the following story:
>
7 Z2 A& w, f% s% L; G6 }7 t> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
, W2 T& K% p7 M9 N> 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
4 E9 L! F) |1 {9 d! v/ S! p: j! {> 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
' [& B5 {' d. Q% O> 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
. Z6 s5 }. a0 w: c> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
3 [5 @! k/ w* p# R5 I8 Q& z> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
' F6 }( k, y. Y: e  E0 D> 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( n- l  u+ a: |3 P$ Q7 P> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
. v. a. T/ [& N" [, e> 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
0 {: T4 R. U  ?! I4 B> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
1 q4 c+ q6 Q5 O1 |# y3 ]> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
7 f" S# c; D$ l- u+ y6 o> 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
& z. {/ m( c% Y; l5 g, r: S> next at bat.
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> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
4 V1 Y( W( C; s2 X8 ?( t> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
7 b8 N/ O  L0 E- q1 X- W> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
- R" k: K# D0 R  T> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
> 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
> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
# Q1 l& t) G( {8 S1 O$ Q> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
* A4 G5 x$ _" f> 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
$ j- i  {: D! b2 C8 n> 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 |8 I  `) h, E7 X1 u/ d% z3 L> wide-eyed and startled.
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> 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
6 g' h2 A7 k0 V  \: M/ z3 r1 f> 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
( H+ ^. q" S9 h9 ]% I1 c> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
! T1 E/ q, o: h> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
1 j1 R5 z4 K# O9 }! {) H0 t, S4 S> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
- |" E; ?- g( U# K, M8 y> circled the bases toward home.
>
, v# h8 [, ^- [# x; U> 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!'
>
4 D! l/ f+ b7 h" ~> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
  k) m! ^0 [( K- ?# e& G. L: r( l> 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
8 @5 G/ m8 E/ L> 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
9 O! b' n( _4 G9 z6 X/ r, f> into this world'.
>
4 E) \; A* L2 j6 |7 C# W> 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
/ ?; x3 x: s+ ]3 G6 |> 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
> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
$ ^7 v( t7 V; s. f> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
0 u) R+ C& @4 ?' c/ Q& W$ |! w+ @> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
2 y5 e! ^. u) X7 ]! `> 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
* v$ e5 c0 Q# x2 a5 M> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
( q) {8 i! `' M> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
2 ]6 U# C9 v" ^' Y8 w& |+ K> 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
2 O* p. K+ ]. W' B& Y( s8 `- e> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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$ W$ [  }  f+ v+ i> A wise man once said every society is judged by
9 v# t& p% E, I5 H# ]4 h. P> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
/ h3 @, F% [0 h( ^> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.