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,
> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
: t9 o) v; M6 g( [# B, H# O! U- A> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
8 N' M) j: s1 h0 T! l> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> 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
. E% V) N1 a; ]2 e% ?: K) ~> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
> 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
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
- L4 w7 a% i! E8 K) f> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
! w2 [- P6 n; r& x, V> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> 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
> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
9 `1 c; O) o# M> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
- y3 y# W: f4 E7 m  @; R2 a> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
# C/ f/ n" W2 M, C& [> inning.'
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> 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
  w( Z' G: V7 c7 L7 M> 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
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
* u& H) t9 A$ O( h" M0 O> 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
0 V6 t$ P/ b! o5 [' s> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
) x1 d4 x9 N3 Z- E( i> next at bat.
>
  E3 J% m3 \( G% T* l> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
; C/ L3 u9 F% u, n- _> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
* S! D3 y% S3 L$ O) i> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
1 @/ i0 E* Z  c- {* m2 V* V% G2 j> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
6 S: z% T# m5 ^3 D> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
7 D' y; ]) w  `% t: H$ W# L> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
6 L" c8 F  _9 z% z> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
0 C, Q) {/ m+ g- ?> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
/ T3 \) y6 l( z6 p  I0 L0 L0 w> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
  B9 Y/ l$ C( s2 j- e6 C2 g> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
0 x4 H4 j7 e8 n. @> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
2 L! l0 f* G$ O% b3 I* F5 u> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
; Y) O* A) ^) U: F+ r> 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
  F3 d; e$ k: W* B, g2 p7 M2 _> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
! v. A4 {1 ~; y8 ~% z> circled the bases toward home.
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4 y/ j0 p" ?0 \1 q  s2 P( l> 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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8 N  q9 N$ I! V3 D4 |1 d> 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
' y( u( v% F4 C9 B7 k> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
>
" c% z0 }# D" ?; ^> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
' O% ^; w4 D# P/ N, y; }$ T> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
4 ~% `3 C. l( ]7 B> into this world'.
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- `9 M( P8 r! M( |9 k+ m> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
0 }& U& ?4 O/ ?& ^; C5 Q/ `> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
/ V; A' M$ L" s: S- x6 I3 g% i1 e> 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
3 d  h3 Q. J4 j. \  i) G> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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! M# B  S) e* d  W: b: C" v> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
2 V3 {2 @, T) ]> 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
$ N- ~2 x; u# E' d7 C# V* \4 G> 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
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
$ O3 X; T: l7 u% S7 V/ ^. |> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
: r  T6 D9 ?7 W4 u! A4 _) `> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
( O+ n& R) Z! E: j/ S9 U! o> bit colder in the process?
>
! ~" C9 ~' F1 M' r> A wise man once said every society is judged by
0 o+ _4 s1 J' W0 l. N> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.