Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
1 p- F7 o/ B4 g, w% G: L$ p: r3 Z> 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?
  x4 k8 A, _" [4 q0 H( t>
> 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
  o) _+ P# t9 T& U6 l5 I* |> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
$ ]9 ~1 k6 n, \& ?9 q6 ^& W" u> staff, he offered a question:
6 V! ~- J% T0 H9 G: j$ D( |- J>
1 L( o  J' H/ O7 G8 N5 E6 P> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
9 e. a* u2 u4 t9 U; j8 _> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
# o: b* O$ J9 S9 p( W> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
3 F, T* `4 w1 f* g> The audience was stilled by the query.
( f. C! D, |1 h>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
# p: I! `8 m' W# v- X  i- @0 G+ R> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
6 _5 C* R+ Y! ~, ^0 e> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
3 O8 T6 q* d+ I8 O- T- f7 L5 `>
- J- s0 t* ~3 j- N! Z> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' R  N! p5 K. ~+ x" P> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
! o; r$ l& j7 {$ Y5 a' U) G> 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
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
& w# D& C) w8 k' V0 ?2 ?  k/ O> 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
1 c2 F# ?, Q* U8 Z> inning.'
>
1 Z% v' s5 y$ |1 x8 B> 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
0 _& n8 U, X% |& `> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
3 T9 H; Z7 c' ]( F: N' ~> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
3 Z6 L$ g! E6 \: f: j% b3 m> 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
' F( K& n1 ?0 w. N/ B> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
* N, [3 _4 M; e) B> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
3 U/ r4 Y4 f4 J6 G> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
. q" M% F) M. \, |8 d3 K1 z1 G  Y> next at bat.
>
- K7 X4 _/ v) S/ |> 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
> 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
# a# D' b+ @7 ?/ ?9 K> 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
1 t6 w9 {3 q, J. i> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
5 L! S  X3 `8 j> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
! v, b5 c( B3 ]0 U  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
8 i( U+ i  }2 G# j4 }& s> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
5 A8 C* E7 }; E) c7 T3 }! C> 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.
9 {7 Y  m5 k6 Q5 R( |>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
" k8 v  c2 i% |> 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
0 ^4 u) x) Y" @( s* \/ _> 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
6 M* B% @5 b0 {* R" v- [+ x! f> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
/ A& Z4 T2 m" D>
1 p3 l8 x$ E$ V9 \4 l1 d> 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!
: q# c2 M* N% S7 f8 w! d> Shay, run to third!'
  W1 x9 n" {; a/ s; D>
  S5 ~8 f( E: A2 T> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
# m6 K  V" ~' C: T2 l> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
1 m; G8 X9 c" ?9 d2 |# [: g> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
% T5 k/ ~: u8 W3 C* m>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
, l! Q- a# ~3 P4 L> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
$ {; \" H& m# \) d- d2 W2 T- D>
* t9 z" k1 `2 _  u2 o# H> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
5 g/ `. |. f. w3 x4 V> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
  M( n2 K! ^# \5 i9 C> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
8 d, X' G% f, z! W# i0 D8 ?8 E>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
7 H, }2 Q' W9 ~2 h4 `) 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
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
  Z& m/ p3 y# _. @: N6 n>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
8 s- Q; C! \3 v> 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
/ Z3 H, {; K. H4 g. J+ A6 l% l> 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
7 A( K  S( d& E+ k0 O" u> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
, f  K* p% B+ d: B" y1 d> 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
! s  ~7 Z/ x) W1 }+ z/ h> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
$ F1 m5 S; M, V; P> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
+ Z0 }' \+ v* \& ]: u>
  p: x8 S! U+ x6 {% s: F4 x; N> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
- B, o. D  }5 q> 2. Forward
1 X% q/ A1 V7 O! ]>
3 b( g) ~( p/ R* {- _9 F/ Y% g# O> May your day, be a Shay Day.