Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
9 j4 N/ j( u! `6 a) {8 \> 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
( S/ N' m' f( g. R> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
0 y4 x+ v$ T% c- ^> staff, he offered a question:
>
3 E3 G# k) J! G$ z0 b> '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
8 ?' |( W# m- q* {5 h. m, p0 p> natural order of things in my son?'
8 A' v2 A5 k9 h3 V+ j>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
9 G8 D% X" b8 c/ ?>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
# r3 O2 j4 B5 C' f3 H3 W> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
9 y1 J9 K! `6 M" K& ~" p5 g9 b9 _$ l* p> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
+ q1 w. Q0 `% S( r) ]5 d> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
+ i5 h/ }6 W, v8 l0 h2 [> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
4 ?# |; Q( ^1 L> 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,
! D3 @  K/ ]; Q& N> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
. [$ A# q* L9 v; V/ U> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
) b1 y$ Y2 q( O9 V>
9 N" A5 B2 d& ~2 C6 y> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
; ]- j/ R9 |; [7 A9 W3 G7 X> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
7 A9 q) p) y9 Y> 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
- j) d7 J/ f0 l! S> inning.'
* z" j4 j) C- q+ x2 |>
> 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
. Q" V- l; V' D- a. ?: t- q> 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
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
$ ?% @: N$ h; E> 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
. q* f1 L% o1 E3 n> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
' ]# }* D+ g0 v  E' c) ?> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
! e2 V, E& Z9 s! R> 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
8 s" t" |1 e- X+ l+ A> 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
7 o1 H+ a  s* x> right back to the pitcher.
! g/ {( U; N0 K7 J& _' E>
> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
# i0 f. t0 r) ]# i' |> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
; j& ~$ j( |( W" R" M$ p> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
! C3 y0 A( d6 ^> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
1 n( |0 Y7 J- h4 Q* Q> 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.
>
# X  n. _5 @: H( R% c) m8 |> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
. I# W8 j7 r& _. ~! m4 p> 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,
> 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.
>
1 T! Q9 w0 V2 e: d; K7 F5 b4 s' t> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
+ H% J/ z/ {3 B; n>
- ]! e  P6 O) D& Y> 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!'
- r9 P; B1 X' h  ~4 f, I/ Z>
  m7 {' U/ e9 e2 G> 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
+ r" s$ R& f8 g2 z2 N! F> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
>
& d. M5 P, C" C6 n> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
6 [" w$ k, M. Q, K  W* Z  ~" U" r> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
1 j% [$ ~! i5 U+ z$ W: Z> into this world'.
>
> 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
- \3 E+ b8 c( a9 K* _7 W> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
% m0 A5 g8 h0 }> 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
, O! I, U4 C7 f& D/ a# o2 N- W> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
. M$ C8 O& |3 i/ ?1 T> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
& v" P8 R3 t1 ~9 F; Z/ a9 `> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
  K; B' m, B9 o> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
+ t" E) F0 q6 N6 w& I> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
* V$ \0 U* y' n; b6 v) J0 d> 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
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
! `1 o8 t2 ~" T$ v2 a3 ]> 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?
7 M: {7 w( e  w8 @. v2 m+ e>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
5 G- ^7 o9 n9 D( l/ p) E> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
/ }5 [! G4 g9 _% t> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.