Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
& y9 E$ K, g& r  z+ {0 e> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
% w; J- ]9 N( f> 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,
2 b, ]: u9 S4 E> 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
+ g0 s8 x4 v) m8 t( H+ t5 L( g2 U> staff, he offered a question:
>
; v+ G) Q$ a4 M8 I* P> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
/ S: ?1 c" Z5 t0 ~8 e0 W; `> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
0 }6 v) W; h& G: _6 a> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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6 I, t! C' o* ~' Q> 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.'
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" h: n) O" d" [' X> Then he told the following story:
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' |! Z( M! m) j. z# |" b0 e* v; O6 C> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
- S, g5 M5 y5 n5 f* G# m> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
- K# ~, x! [$ T> 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
) m* C+ v8 y+ t7 `! k* A  n4 L> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
6 ?) V" z. u0 C  o& b> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
2 `, n* _1 f  Z. P' [7 {> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
/ ~' A+ D  _$ S2 B. o6 B> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
* l" m1 T% ^3 ^, V. ]3 j> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
5 ~" S8 [0 C, e, J! {2 t> 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
> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
* @8 a$ ^$ d8 H7 w> 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
/ n* K: g9 O) C' D/ W0 k$ M> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
3 o0 r' B4 e* F6 w# u' T> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
3 z1 q$ t3 M! F  L$ @> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
$ z! ?+ U7 Z; p, \- p" Q> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 ^% d/ q, R$ s/ o. L> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
7 E  K! |9 F  C! `" l$ N  G: W> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
' A- i5 ~1 ]. g; Z; E" J5 k  o> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
1 ^0 U' J% N: L1 K7 D> much less connect with the ball.
$ h3 n; [* `; ?> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
2 u. {% B) D- Q> 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.
. Z' |2 V6 y% i> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
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# P, a, `/ a, T> 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
4 Q- U+ ]5 ^+ a8 d> 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
7 A1 D. J1 Q9 A9 q3 v> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
0 F+ r: p0 }) b  l. r> 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,
5 Q$ U8 V' k$ l1 g1 c: b8 H& h> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
! q! c6 L# l7 W  L> 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
> 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
> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
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( v' u0 ^' r! D> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
0 i( o9 ?! w% I' }* S% Q> 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
. M+ h2 n9 T( g  m1 U+ E# l1 ~2 v+ X, g> 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
> 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
> into this world'.
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> 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
# @* \% z5 M& l2 s2 I% M> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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> 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; H0 f4 j+ {1 ^> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
" O0 s  O9 M# R: T5 v* l> 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
8 K5 o" `8 [( o+ I1 @% T  s" H6 b> 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
0 W7 x. k& r8 s> 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
! p( O! p5 y6 h6 @> 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.
>
) \1 E8 A& A/ y> You now have two choices:
+ ]. y! S( X) }, d) \7 Q5 E> 1. Delete
& _% f/ A' U7 l+ d# y> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.