Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
$ o! j+ M1 |8 S/ T/ V- N5 Z> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
8 z! ]. c, X  k  Q, U- P' T> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
2 x3 y9 }& h( @, O7 v% n> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
& E4 Q# a7 a) z6 D. M9 r> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
9 K# R$ P( r; I3 O/ E( A( y> staff, he offered a question:
>
% M2 P& L3 T* H6 a- P+ U/ F) I> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> 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?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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! B# L5 ^. o" x+ l9 X> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
) Y" ^/ [+ {5 L- m' O> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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5 c+ z  [, P/ e> Then he told the following story:
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& P2 z! d3 h0 e* P> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
> 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
  s6 a& n; w8 [  J. _, `: I1 \: H> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
$ X3 w& a! {2 d1 f; I" b> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
$ `7 x$ ]1 M$ ^8 a+ f7 ^6 f> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
: |, P5 P; m( [> 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
0 r( U- e. @* ~> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
>
( z6 v6 u( E8 v> 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
: \6 c3 i& i" f8 D/ ^& F8 H# z> 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
> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
: X+ X; B4 Z. B+ i5 b* a1 v+ }+ f$ a> 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
6 n* h* t& x- @! ?" F  O1 d, L" r> 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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> 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
  U( A$ B1 g7 e: y8 {> 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
> 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
! R" [/ u6 D* `5 ?% p> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
7 b( m8 l8 w+ ?5 ^* x> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
1 S4 ^- w1 b- u* H3 _9 a) g3 E+ B> right back to the pitcher.
>
4 v+ j9 H, O- e6 G" J+ D' j: i) J> 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.
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& E$ K6 a5 W" A/ 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.
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> 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
' J% Q1 |$ W' e9 x2 z> 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,
$ Y, O7 _+ U' m. Q. L+ M( m> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
$ w$ Z  G" H/ ~: P, e/ X6 }1 b0 O> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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7 K5 m$ l0 t7 r; j> 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!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
5 O9 I! E% C' z4 o> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
9 e( f! H" `. s9 e! s: C+ p" G+ s> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
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2 `$ V) \, U9 v  G0 Y> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
; b5 q; n# H6 J7 |, c8 E2 H# I1 u> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
- r/ y% O7 J# C3 j; K> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
' [# N+ I8 \1 R# ]1 Y> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
- N6 k/ @7 z/ U3 `5 Z1 ]/ K4 H4 Q> 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
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
: U, p- x" Q2 t: W( D6 `> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
  M' X3 R5 L1 s( D0 o0 F$ U> 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
> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
: l7 v2 p! h8 p9 q0 k7 K3 n( `% m> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
( W( {  e9 t+ y+ s8 l> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
  i3 u  ], ?6 s- Q/ [5 {1 j> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
- u  \5 q2 b& X9 P> 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?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
1 C0 A' n& K; o7 _6 @  k5 q9 y' b; a8 L> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
2 h& m* \  x. j# d# ]> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.