Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
' |' p4 Q) ~! c# K/ m  w> 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?
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> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
2 i3 _: B8 d* e5 i* H> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
  ?% h! M& ~" P5 H> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
( O& r3 B  x1 R7 y2 J" H> staff, he offered a question:
1 J  i" N; B4 {0 _>
( ~3 w9 D) ^; x' P5 R> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
9 Z1 h3 O& o$ N$ i# k; \7 F> 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
/ c6 T( d5 g- I/ o! Z8 k> natural order of things in my son?'
>
: _* H2 V0 z$ l- b: y, {> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> 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.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
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; Y6 |4 b' K( h> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
) m' K5 {# L  c> 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
0 f/ m# }! f" V7 j& u> 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.
>
/ H" |5 ?* u% ^4 i; D4 \- w> 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
  }6 ^7 R5 ]- ~+ D> 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
  `4 i, C4 T; ]: Q# D; A( Y. S> inning.'
>
> 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
  V7 ?* h2 o2 X5 e, i3 r> 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
1 n1 T2 V" J% m( L# d2 j/ _5 o> 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
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
: B* U: Y+ x/ S+ v" u> 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
> 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
9 P' B5 _, i! {% X3 b% {+ _1 G> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
% |  F: K" b$ I7 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
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
8 K; o8 ]5 }+ U) W> 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
( t$ g# {3 m2 ~2 f> right back to the pitcher.
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> 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
; o# O. o2 Z0 s) Y7 c$ T" U> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
& F) A1 W* q6 ]2 |! H> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
  D3 w1 \5 m4 T6 x& G0 E! k; V$ @> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
, [2 v( I, @4 b, F  U7 K9 L8 C> 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,
/ R- w3 o( ?  f# N* e( g7 V> 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
9 v: J7 W7 d1 x, E2 z# _> 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
> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
6 `; u7 G, d# X> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
  B! f. {5 S4 d9 F> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
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  ~- g  o) M" t( `> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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& f" O# Z, Z( S  h> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
: ^) x( G4 W) @4 V) ?> 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
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
) n/ P: f5 N3 M* w7 i# p+ Z> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
8 s( O2 W1 h. X5 N7 V3 A% h> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
: n0 M9 @" d7 k& p6 j2 E> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
, H0 r6 Z9 D- s/ k; f6 i> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
2 U& `, g& Y) }8 p( P0 f/ _> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
0 ]8 n& y0 x7 D8 n( }( Y2 v( `2 V> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
$ \( }% V6 i  y. j4 ]1 V> 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
# o2 T" g% x# a+ N. j9 ?& m# J5 I> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
3 X* W- ~2 D( B6 e7 }, ^>
9 l2 h$ Q! [4 G* u8 y* J& A6 ]> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
) U6 ?$ q3 v( G; [) V" Y, D> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
: P5 j/ h. w$ V3 w> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
( c2 u- n7 |6 _: v+ B, J* Q4 G> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
" e1 {; Z- c; m> 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
5 q3 ?' r7 z6 @7 |3 ]> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
: s( a, y3 u; A6 D> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
+ t. y; |  u/ R( b6 _( i2 U/ G> 1. Delete
; l% M5 Y+ T% N# `* M: x- W  }> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.