Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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9 d- a8 K0 Z. A# b& j> 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,
> 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
  J( J& x0 I0 k+ Q% N! f* z> staff, he offered a question:
>
. g) ?: D8 ?7 y4 `, L> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
) J+ H5 B, }: K% `  S7 _> 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?'
>
2 q: ?, f+ S, C  S$ ]9 \> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
. c5 H. A/ X2 ^> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
' v' Y; ^# E2 P" F> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
! m2 l  |7 W; n, Q/ B> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
0 S: l& {( |. h  C> Then he told the following story:
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> 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
$ p% z+ l! E1 ~% T! 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
, |6 y4 l0 d6 m> 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
> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
2 n, n4 D/ U9 b" s> inning.'
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  G5 h5 A$ s% f& B0 y> 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
> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
/ J# @5 U6 e9 `8 |* d$ ?> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
6 v" Z# Z. v4 B+ `1 b" b" V> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
4 d/ f' y( o: g0 B0 k. J> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
) {5 S4 e, `# O5 R6 [. }4 i1 D> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
* S1 z: f2 i  Z8 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
+ a. f7 G3 V8 b# i4 X/ Z6 J> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
+ D3 N5 e& l; J> next at bat.
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& l. l; T: X* o3 i% D( j; H6 U! [) T> 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
$ v9 a$ Y4 W* U$ b> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
" ~# o- {, R6 \' G/ [: W. Y6 ^> 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
> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
1 W) d8 \/ A# Y$ U> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
; }& I/ R3 v/ O1 K, t& r  B) H) }> 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
. M8 a! ~: W# e: o! I0 Z( ]> 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
& V2 V( t8 c/ c* F" w( M> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
3 D5 ]8 x7 y- d0 y& j$ M% }> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
" C# m; n; i7 H; o/ Q6 r) h> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
/ L) U+ O9 i) L  S  F0 o) G1 I> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
" ?4 |0 z# [' F2 v% d> 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
8 K& P/ s* a% w> 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,
> 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
) R! p( D  Q8 M> circled the bases toward home.
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4 L# u  R$ d, m) n- e5 ?' P> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
( s, ]$ \+ |3 m6 L" v8 v> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
0 Q7 k; C- S4 H5 \> 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
5 D8 j4 g9 S' \4 H6 @; d> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
. s" ~7 j$ F$ K  A> game for his team.
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( J5 S$ N. g0 s( ~> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
1 H, t. r( |( ?) O, L6 Y> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
3 [; Y/ C$ T" {  @> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
* t3 b, g: }- u% _: b> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
- {  Q8 u, y5 s3 S> 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
0 B* W2 |5 o7 e( r> 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
% z6 C& n, [" r# A* o> 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
> 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
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
) l: D3 m3 k0 W7 C> 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
, f9 h) J% t7 T  {, Z6 x> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
, b" S8 H% U  L! T7 [> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
; Y7 C6 T& y6 B4 z4 H4 ^7 F> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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' p$ \. q8 q. c> May your day, be a Shay Day.