Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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) `0 P0 M- h. M3 }6 h# x/ b0 u+ S> 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
' {9 h( w" Y! K+ w! V$ X> same choice?
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4 S5 @/ Z5 _; S& [8 w' |> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
3 Y* u3 c1 g9 p( Y( t6 G> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
( ?7 V; j# {- }& C/ o> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
$ F. @/ W8 h8 `% y4 U> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
8 P+ j1 J7 t! s8 t9 r/ o% Q3 L8 v> 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
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
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$ F" F2 f9 c0 O8 d+ `, s> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
8 ^- ]' c* Z, x- d- B) }# E> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
) y$ }  z. b' x4 e- }' \$ w> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
6 U4 j1 m2 z4 o& T> treat that child.'
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  k# a' L/ a7 L/ W3 K9 Q, X> Then he told the following story:
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4 X( Q' Q1 ~9 ]# @5 R/ _# {> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
8 d$ E. V. ?% [4 J; ?# i- I; @> 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
& f9 P& m( d7 T1 ~3 o- P$ L> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
! s7 V/ t! ]6 V# c7 \> 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
> 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
> inning.'
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0 |0 Z) Y* l$ E; q! J. E. _> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
6 x2 @$ f" \& {: x' h> 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
  n- q1 l# K1 ?( [: J( B: \> 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
. ?  Z) V! Z  B$ e- G4 G6 O- b> 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
> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
2 J# i6 g8 D! k  k6 `, R0 H( \> 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
> next at bat.
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" b/ u+ z6 j+ t1 K& a> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
& ]5 ^3 K( f" n6 X+ {- c> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
+ j4 w4 [8 u, M4 Z/ _> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
6 \, [; P. }$ `; O> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
* T& g1 x; R! s' f2 V/ @- G) b> 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
% w% \$ ]2 ^/ f: I, J, v8 d9 ^" g> 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
$ z% q/ ^5 Y4 @' G> right back to the pitcher.
>
" Y3 a# h8 a3 R( S> 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.
>
> 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
) d# I" G/ y. P% R4 e* q, Y& ?7 b> 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 N  s; L" F) P+ x  {& o> wide-eyed and startled.
>
/ K; }6 c$ g' X+ t9 P> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
: _* A; A0 X2 x, G+ ^; G> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
+ E/ |8 f2 G8 ?. J: N> 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
* e% o3 ]7 e: f> 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,
# O) ~! h6 a- o. s# z- {/ d> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
& R$ O6 D/ R+ S- D7 O' F> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
( B+ X0 b' E: t$ f> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
& l1 D7 h0 p0 m  D9 o4 s; |. u> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
8 h: h' b. q/ z8 ~) X% Y) f> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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( b) m- i1 C. J4 L4 @( U$ {  o. y" y+ E> 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
5 Z3 W1 u/ X$ w> game for his team.
>
> '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'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
$ K& a" A% j, X0 H! x> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
7 w8 b9 I6 w. u. Z! [! N: Q& K9 R> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
6 [9 u/ g. z7 p4 \' c% `3 B> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
7 g! X& R) \4 ]$ a4 D1 S& \> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
, s/ J/ n5 K, J" q! i> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
4 `5 T; q8 @4 j0 P9 g. v> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
6 c. @: G% T- E> 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
  X3 X: b% J4 k8 H> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
+ E# s* c; L1 U, {" Q> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
# u& M) I: d7 [" R& \5 Q9 w> 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
> bit colder in the process?
>
, }- T2 c2 i) N; X! e7 {> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
1 j  v: L7 i. M9 G& \  E, d> 1. Delete
4 d# l" ]7 s& S9 ?# J$ Z> 2. Forward
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& M: |  V9 `7 R$ X6 Q  |5 Z) _$ d4 P> May your day, be a Shay Day.