Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
( B) @4 i& J+ T3 L. e> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
% _! s4 f0 o) ~: u! o! o1 i! U> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
/ I3 R; a% k; ~3 O  r0 O> same choice?
>
> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
% t6 w- J1 w9 N/ m7 |> 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
5 _- @. k: R7 z. q( k, |/ ~> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
: [6 ^- L5 b# b4 z/ {> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
2 H/ g5 x8 X# o> natural order of things in my son?'
>
- e6 K8 M4 B0 f& q) |  V' B) V> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> 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
% \! Q5 T; A! u> 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
) c& ]) P# M& N8 M6 L  k> 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
& v! }9 u  e& n+ z1 N  M5 g* Q* \& Q> 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
" ~% o& d" [7 y# U) Z8 s> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> 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
# X) Q2 z- Z9 `) F2 f+ ^& v> 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
3 J' F& s! I0 d2 |> inning.'
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3 Y  }" |1 k7 D! P- v/ y> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
* j0 h+ k( u9 D% u# ]> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
) [, z5 X/ t& W5 G> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
0 D* E8 H, a; q' u& N2 \3 o> 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
$ a* E$ }: }# w' G; M! i& h> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
+ z, d$ N( t) v  k3 d> 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.
$ T% M, @+ k5 T3 h>
+ z5 m- B' }6 S1 ^* J> 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
" ~& V; @, s: z# M, l3 L  X9 B> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
4 S3 g3 ^8 H! b! m6 F9 T$ f8 c2 x> 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
& c+ P4 A4 e6 {" @; B" V8 ^2 n> 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
; w$ P9 a6 {* C- r+ m2 {9 [> right back to the pitcher.
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9 a9 e5 ^, s, \; t> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
& b7 a) J% p1 Z- M7 q; {> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
+ f$ B6 u! L! h+ o4 ?4 c: p# Q+ E& R# T& a> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
4 e3 |! c- B. |+ O! N* x> 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
1 T6 J8 ^7 ~8 W8 I> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
5 H8 h' M4 _6 ~, D; N2 L) \  B>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
+ M, D& n2 T) t- ?( m* k& y> 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
" @# s$ t1 G; r; L1 V4 i> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
  v. {2 \2 r' N, |> 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
( a% e/ H* \% j- b. M+ h  ?! @3 o> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
! x0 ?- A! g/ [9 N  S% I' H> circled the bases toward home.
2 {" `3 V/ W% o>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
4 k, d. K6 q% I0 `( W4 x% t> 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!
" i! X4 P- P+ Z/ i* _8 K> Shay, run to third!'
7 {) N# i: P1 A>
> 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
- L! b2 l4 r6 A, `1 H! H. \> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
) ^" h0 g2 N9 L6 R) H4 a6 f7 r) }: y> game for his team.
  ~# \* M* X5 u5 m7 ?* K% D# t>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
  ^+ ]4 Q; S# n4 ~( o0 o0 \> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
) Z3 p' V; A; ~" b9 }# s> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
5 i  p( J( F, ^& z+ V6 L$ C> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
% ]6 c, `" k; w' c3 v>
& H% c& l6 M/ x/ Z> 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
. j$ i  _8 V: X8 B> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
1 x  W; y2 M# b# V8 ]3 h+ c, Z> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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; \4 r$ \& z. ]7 R$ A2 C9 y* F* v6 a" P> 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
# ?; G5 e/ f9 V' g7 Y& \' d- H> 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
& p* V* g% d/ c1 R4 V> bit colder in the process?
' s. @* X+ _( _1 C6 D8 y2 d>
. f! M! ]- b, A> A wise man once said every society is judged by
0 C& `2 Y% u. c  M5 B6 {, o7 [> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
& @2 }! q/ u5 n6 w; T! @> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
0 s2 z4 @8 }1 F' H+ x0 W; f+ J> May your day, be a Shay Day.