Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
& w2 I9 j/ }8 Y: u  y> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
- b; k' C. e& e! g4 X- `> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
> 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
. V. P4 H% }6 K+ x> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
5 j6 `5 H. L  r5 c4 M. q. \> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
+ v' k$ X9 q4 C/ L" j+ b> natural order of things in my son?'
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& k* N! c" P4 q( E# }& q> The audience was stilled by the query.
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' M$ v- Y4 c5 v: W> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
7 E. \" w2 o4 e- [1 K( @> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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1 j/ ], @8 U) y1 ]> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
+ ]' l5 n8 }( O- ?) 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
> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
3 `) j, @4 {, C  J) a8 z> 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
: K2 [; _, p8 v2 t> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
1 j3 v+ {1 j) U" T2 T; l+ j- e> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
  J6 B2 D8 q9 r  {; e> inning.'
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9 ]) ^7 W4 t0 E0 h( [& }) s' G> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
7 |2 Y% d! g9 V& o. Z> 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
' d& |+ x4 E. a% M> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
! y- f: L: O% f$ x$ `# w$ e> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
" T+ g( w# M+ h  X5 ^> 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
; _; p3 p0 S7 \5 }3 ^8 U> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
) e1 {' K1 v6 j8 [, |8 ?0 V( ^> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
9 S# b5 C6 E$ |2 c- `  x> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
- x5 ]( g! B& X2 e0 S6 Q4 ^% v: A> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
- z' e1 X, H! U  V' L! g# V> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
) T8 g2 h3 j: D) p> much less connect with the ball.
* P$ H" c' F, q: l5 s> 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
0 n, ~/ e) Y% I9 I> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
) p9 p5 B9 C+ s( g> 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.
> 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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) W. V  A0 L( s3 n0 ^. T. @& M( I> 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
3 x& ^+ |3 o1 ~+ _> 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
- t. q6 s& n& l* E4 \) I> 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.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
. s7 B$ F* g8 G! h> 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
> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
9 p" q6 p" B( w% _2 n6 n5 j) 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,
9 }( _$ i0 z8 B' j5 o& r> 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
8 }" y9 j" l$ g" B$ \> circled the bases toward home.
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- U+ f" ~9 y& E& ^> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
6 c. e. c! J; s$ D2 S> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
# _9 Y. b. {  e# U> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
: `6 a! F6 D+ m& b5 ]> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
- P6 W% k& C0 J1 N8 n% L  ^> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
/ M: I* T, k+ K* Y: i> game for his team.
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& K- X3 t6 d5 q' {> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
% Q8 d  q& r" w' r" Q( b4 u' }> '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
% z3 E; H, N) ]1 _> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
> 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
# Z5 x) I, c  V0 y> 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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> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
. ?2 {  L4 R- I> 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
# [4 n! x' [( U, q4 M> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
7 K4 \' N; t' S- I8 h> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
; r: ~$ E( P+ ^, T! 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
5 o) [* h" F) P) t- S$ C> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
1 B- }: J9 y; ?  [$ _6 F> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
9 X6 U9 p. P) @) C> 2. Forward
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0 \5 g) ~  V/ I7 j! Q7 c> May your day, be a Shay Day.