Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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. I5 n, O* H) Q5 a> 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
  |8 |/ T4 |; K6 C9 w8 V8 W5 v6 q> same choice?
>
* M# ?. j; @$ e$ B# {. a& U0 \. D> 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
" D. _' u' d7 m> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
2 h" i" e* C6 b9 X> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
' f! c) \# r, F1 D+ P/ a/ k% F> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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" J# ^+ O7 Z$ G0 G% [> The audience was stilled by the query.
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3 O0 E  P- i& T7 z5 P$ P  A: z7 e> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
5 V( e4 j& C% m* M: h( E' P5 N> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
$ r' {' R6 c8 Z8 _> treat that child.'
>
- D# l& A( M; J% S) e( O* s> Then he told the following story:
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. [3 x  }/ Y( L1 W/ k+ C> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
( ^3 }- R: g% f' L6 F. T# \8 ?> 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
# e* J% |# d9 \2 e* _8 d9 I7 ~6 I> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
: p+ D! J/ Y% M6 S+ M; S> 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
> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
  \' Z! H6 r6 @: D8 h) R3 B  {> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
+ X1 I# E3 `- \( f: ?> inning.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
+ u) _& b! A- }( R> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
, }; @" u. _1 }  _5 c  x' n, p> 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
& ^$ B' m# t2 a$ M> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
" Z3 I6 H+ y" z> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
  W. z3 z2 I% r+ Q> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
7 B' q/ O$ a% C> 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
$ \" H9 h. I4 Y7 l3 i/ g, W9 O> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 r  N1 W9 Q8 ~% f6 J# }> next at bat.
>
0 A: h# W+ W/ _$ `! g> 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
; a/ Y8 B+ q5 K> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
4 V/ E* S6 X7 s8 A/ j6 z> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
% W4 A8 n$ H' D3 C! a> 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
: e1 M0 }# D3 o. ~$ ^> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
1 a5 y4 \3 T3 W- {$ b# ^5 y; z4 T> 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.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
& R3 Q* @6 ]" R! W+ g! A> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
' B5 W5 W6 Q, A/ N> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
7 ]; u" h! Q6 G) X) ^' }8 b> 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 G# `/ R- C9 g6 F  ?> 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,
! O; }' t$ ?/ n+ n3 F3 ]/ _> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
) e* p# J* @; u6 l> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
3 h6 b3 d2 {9 S9 s! A> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
0 \5 [" e2 u2 U' [, x' |> 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,
4 Z$ A' c3 D) u0 }" v; |> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
' D9 m* N, s- o  Z; B- C; @> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
. z" H' g& i- I- P> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
! c( G' o* |4 s' z7 p> 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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5 ?8 ?$ v0 K) M& a- V> 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
& o& R& B2 P# \> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
+ ^! r* d4 y6 ~" Z1 M> game for his team.
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' ^7 g/ A8 v  ], d; u" c4 f, m> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
1 @0 B! i8 ?5 m( z  @: T0 h8 M> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
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8 Z9 P3 t' C7 D- U> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
; D% d7 z* t6 \$ x/ y, I> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
# l; v4 J) M! a4 d> 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
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
% h9 s5 z' w, t9 [> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
9 c) R% G3 a+ h! 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
0 `* p; E8 D9 |5 N6 o4 G> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
& v7 g2 \6 A' u0 \5 ?2 w> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
% _" \5 s* ?4 a6 q) Q$ @% n. R> 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
! s8 g1 I! q/ |> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
$ Z" m7 v) c* r5 A> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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5 Y6 V7 L9 j" b> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.