Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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7 }/ a: ?' ^4 X1 [> 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?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
6 T# t. O" E9 g* o  E; L. j> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
>
$ d8 i, g) O. f0 q1 j> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
5 [! x7 ?- |: S$ U6 v2 }> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
, J+ p; G" D" `- |5 e, c$ C' H; s> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
0 g% C- l3 x0 R% q" y; X8 a7 ~4 d> natural order of things in my son?'
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( C  ]+ {' @% i- |5 r' Q> The audience was stilled by the query.
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% U1 K7 b& X# N; S  t6 ?> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
* c8 i1 K4 o3 p/ m> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
0 ^  U$ C3 v1 M' w2 c8 X> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' r% v! @9 e" [> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
* f" A: M( ~7 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.
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> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
) z$ Y; U/ P% }/ Z: @# x% t> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
4 ?! ?7 }, K( W# i9 A/ A/ e> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
5 ]0 k) C# P( o: G' M; L! j> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
7 F; B. U/ Z. ^0 T> inning.'
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- W# _! Z( _: U# K3 a/ A# ~: i> 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
9 v) E' q- c7 q> 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
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
. ^/ r2 q' d' Q0 [0 A8 W> 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
7 C+ E" }4 S, u+ r5 E> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
( N% T# b8 [* y. ^, u# D0 B1 J7 S" P> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
6 i1 K" m0 Y  ~' G2 D/ q2 h% I> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
0 v/ C& u9 h* F  I# J4 H: X> next at bat.
>
> 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
4 I, S: a/ W& n. D> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
. c6 X" v* r4 J1 Y! K' t, i6 p4 Y> 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
/ C/ l, E3 S1 }/ [> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
3 G- c3 [7 Z! z  F2 y& e- S> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
3 q- ]/ ~1 o4 k  b( M9 a> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
2 K; |6 ], ?$ ^& i8 Y, x# t+ @, y> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
0 f5 @  K) C5 U, L+ X) }> right back to the pitcher.
>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
, m" m0 }5 B" t8 c# j7 |> 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.
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> 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,
5 Z7 x! @& R+ v0 b$ x" p> wide-eyed and startled.
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1 o) T" r1 L7 a! a+ d5 W% J> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> 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
> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
' P! b1 d: n+ e; d> 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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5 Z6 e, ^/ M, Q$ X$ v/ C7 _- ?$ S( Z& U> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
$ Z. S$ Z* F7 C6 [2 j> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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0 u% j8 p5 j1 u( u> 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
' i7 x7 j6 @# l  p3 q* G> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
! l0 O6 @3 a, \$ P- Q3 h' I3 G> 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
> 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
& T, O: J3 Q# B# j7 Z> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
  z; p# }: l) \% p6 W" m: q> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
6 `& W& t) e8 \2 W) t6 g% ^) u; o> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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% ]3 p- g, N8 e6 q! V3 `( H> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
. g; K  T9 {; c1 u1 _1 b1 u% a! l> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
. }9 m7 G* @( N* [" @! P1 v> '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
, M9 B. H) g6 I' J> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> 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
0 F# @. S# b" M9 H7 u# \> bit colder in the process?
>
3 D8 [4 w+ ?( K> A wise man once said every society is judged by
0 {; u! z7 v+ i. `5 b! a> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
) C. f4 F$ ]( _1 [( j2 H& v> May your day, be a Shay Day.