Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
( u/ ?$ ?) p6 K3 o9 H; ^- c> 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,
! d) `1 S( F; |, p> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
! K, F+ d. B# _5 }$ ]> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
>
) q4 Z. [9 h9 e8 \. t- L, R> '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
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
) P6 g( j4 M9 y5 C: X' {' q> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
% v; m' `- O0 B. S$ ~/ B  p> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
4 @9 H6 A9 C' {4 m# s> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
: d% u3 a- f: ]6 Q/ ?* N> 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
3 D3 x3 K, N2 O5 n. j! V, i  Z> 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
9 M1 }/ `8 F$ n; Y1 j$ k; n, L( P/ F> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
9 {6 ]% V6 B( U/ W; j. }> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
# E* d1 {1 C) L4 ^' x: f> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
3 Z, I+ ?6 Y! l9 E& n4 f4 ]- t> 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
  p. i. l1 i" n, L5 T> inning.'
' v5 \) A, h5 h4 I  P& B; G' n>
! V* W5 r3 G+ y  j2 K: b1 Y> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
' F/ e. S) Q. e) [, D: r> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
# w; m5 I& T( m+ y$ @  \> 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
  h% f# _/ p8 J  i4 Q& [1 V7 @> 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
& ^8 G1 e8 ?0 s$ C6 M> 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
7 ], a' c) b6 D% y* e> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
* s  z8 ^2 B$ o8 n$ j6 J# _> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
* x6 K3 J3 S, ~* M> next at bat.
>
> 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
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
* P+ h( x3 I- q, A( K: B; Z> much less connect with the ball.
' v4 I% l' A4 Y  R/ ]) Z> 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
  w8 t. L" W* f1 u# R5 S> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
/ \4 P8 d" u' v* S& d2 S/ @2 F  k/ X> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
) J: S  P/ S  F7 P9 b0 P$ q- k2 u2 }  N> 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
> right back to the pitcher.
>
> 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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
' e9 q5 `+ U: z% l6 t( R> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
0 V2 A( G- X; {. M$ v2 `> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
! S1 Y% P9 b! q. ^: f4 [6 s* Z9 @6 V> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
  u9 c" H" h+ ]1 ^8 `- G. U* G) m> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
7 d3 Q& \( r; }3 ~' H> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
7 \" [) E; C; j( K) P1 e& T> 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
# B; n& X# K& L: T' m+ _3 h3 B> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
$ ]; b$ W. I4 q2 Y> 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,
2 ?4 K5 O  N3 }> 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.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
/ d8 F1 ^5 p& G. M; g> 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!'
+ F8 D; {8 W. k>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
5 C1 J- ^) E6 m( @& \> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
- o; g, f  }( z3 N. B6 u> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
$ G4 L+ \; o* z3 I3 V5 O) q>
> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
$ V& o5 E1 [. Y4 ^1 R; `8 n# h> into this world'.
6 A( u: W6 J- N1 w" o9 V/ N8 }0 k3 \>
( T8 L5 ]* ~) E> 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
> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
" V/ j1 E- Z5 h> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
  E7 T' s; a- p3 z: s/ z5 A" x8 `9 x> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
0 J- V. t$ E8 h+ j% c: o+ X" {( _" k>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
4 j9 c( V8 |. l; A> 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
' r' `$ k9 U: j! W* n* x3 |) u> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
0 h- \2 w  c% t/ ~$ Z- E& ~- q> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
# w' e9 ]' e8 I  w> 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?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
- n( u; P! o: }. K1 H# S! G> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
: t6 c8 Z3 _3 C' @0 K: i> You now have two choices:
( T+ L2 T6 k8 V5 d; c0 t9 ]) \> 1. Delete
" P% T  w+ Z, [/ a5 X> 2. Forward
>
9 S/ n# N$ Q6 h: ~' ^5 g> May your day, be a Shay Day.