Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
, X$ X4 K5 Y6 N9 F, \4 V; @> 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,
/ M7 ~! L8 d! N% r' d, q# g> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
: a8 }+ Y& m/ S) B! A> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
& I$ [2 Z  Y$ ]: H> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
$ R) C' N- ]; _; }> 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?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
# Y9 S. T" \& C>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
  ?* U7 Z  u2 @0 H- L. A> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
2 y! S! a! u$ ~5 t$ Q> treat that child.'
>
7 `4 T  r( A* H. O- y* Q* T( ~> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
# R2 d4 @1 M( T' Z0 c> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
/ y4 p) C2 j# ~9 G8 b4 f> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
) Z& I1 ?& Z( P. I> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
7 z2 h% j" m. E% m- T4 B4 a* \> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
% ~+ s7 A# i: i" g0 [' C>
> 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
. ^  w# n: C/ G' j. L> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
> inning.'
% W& o* C( d- _4 s9 y9 I>
5 k" d# {+ J% F  q) P3 E> 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
4 G2 M! e3 P/ I# B7 i> 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
# T- V- @+ p2 p" e, {7 k> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
# f2 m( Z# R" |1 @> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
$ t( D5 L$ P3 D; ]1 ?8 Q0 e> 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
> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
- a0 k$ O1 N, i% p> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
9 J$ _4 i/ b. \3 D2 X9 `, L# J: _> next at bat.
" @8 j' `) Y0 v3 z( g>
/ B1 f( c. j3 j  V* V% c2 |8 n; B> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
) j0 G$ F7 K, Z# @# @/ J> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
) Z$ Z$ Z+ X- M/ Z* @> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
; }4 H1 n6 |& \, b! m/ y5 A> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
- K* U( W! `$ [7 ]/ y, S- S) f> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
/ f$ S3 O  `- t7 B) e& [> 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.
) l) i+ ~+ m( d, t' v! n- H) @+ p> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
3 p; o  W6 ]1 K" T* G! e> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
2 U5 s9 Y* e  |' E+ P) g> 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.
" S2 ?2 F% k# N7 l>
> 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,
5 c! S- ^8 ?; `; r8 A; U> wide-eyed and startled.
% d9 U) ]% O+ @: J>
9 k! y* K0 X; U$ F> 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
  h8 Z' b- K% I  B( T9 E9 B> 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.
9 h3 H% q" b: ^6 c+ L8 [- X( d  ]6 G>
' M$ ]9 W& E/ ^1 K- n# O) v2 P> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
* r/ G2 X1 |! @, `' J> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
( H5 H9 D* P0 v$ H% K> Shay, run to third!'
>
3 D4 r# e- O2 F> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
" u) X$ }# R4 }* \> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
7 o0 Y3 ?; E7 ?, @0 h) |> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
: U8 e. K- {8 H: z2 n: o3 j>
, ^8 a6 L, l$ l# Y" A7 Q> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
1 d6 O$ v# s5 G6 [" A> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
% e% M2 ?" W, o* {3 m>
0 ?( c1 r  q8 [- P> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
% a, u  L7 G1 f: D  a> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
+ x0 L. O8 |1 P! n' S> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
$ ?' Z: h6 Z6 W0 v> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
; k# V- q+ r% g  Z5 \7 B  a$ q>
> 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
  [& l" m' U  F+ ?3 {> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
5 b+ y1 I- T* I$ e* w. Y> 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
* Q9 O1 ?2 S- |& @4 X7 \; S6 t2 ?> bit colder in the process?
>
8 x7 B, I" M4 c; c: K% _0 I4 l( h> A wise man once said every society is judged by
" b6 l8 c% v: u2 z, W: }) b> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
/ v& [7 }. t$ b# z, x" W> You now have two choices:
$ g. k. i' w. e> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
9 a% _# `/ d3 i: m>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.