Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
0 l& e% \; m' [7 w/ X3 U9 F> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
6 W/ X- R: i" N: O) b$ |; x> same choice?
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& w3 [  J$ z' J8 S; B/ X0 E> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
; {) ]9 @" {8 ]) l) a8 \' M> the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be
0 O8 S( w0 p8 \1 [2 H, D> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
% G1 ?! `0 m$ F, n> staff, he offered a question:
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# O' E9 b9 e- r9 a9 a9 D6 s& F; h' ~4 ~> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
0 n9 C" G, _6 J! z+ L" w> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
3 h1 r* I7 N0 R* r; |; e> natural order of things in my son?'
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9 K" e9 o& I& p1 P% i, u" h' L  d- V> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
# f9 P' ?- l2 n- k. A> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
6 f% U6 X- J0 L. V9 h7 R> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
. T: k# ?5 X* G9 C5 \> treat that child.'
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  D3 h# q2 r! ^3 L5 z$ o5 y- F5 a> Then he told the following story:
>
1 K; I: c% L' q8 x& ^9 H% u/ k> 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
* F" A+ Z7 _- `+ W6 b3 Q> 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,
/ _6 H" f; `( I$ A6 n& i> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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9 n* U7 U& x& m2 j> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
8 Y. C3 t- G2 s6 z> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
5 C5 A; N6 Y0 H# T2 j4 B: O> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
  y. O$ u8 c5 @> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
7 }/ ^) m; R) j! K5 [2 x> inning.'
>
9 y; ~+ |2 j& d' d9 z3 ^0 ?> 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
3 J' m) S0 ]+ F8 h. b' P' m> 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
> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
0 N5 U# A% ~; K- j# E$ J> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
( P3 i* d# `, X- d3 v> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
; Y+ y# K. F+ r> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
" }9 e3 D0 w! G6 X& b7 P% d$ o: c> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
% z) U. j' ~# ^( Y> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
4 r9 Z' N/ v1 V. a# ^0 R" R  `  P> 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,
3 i/ w  y4 u9 N1 c! y9 {* K; z( c> 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
3 O5 L0 @  k3 L) [! h> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
* ~/ B" {! n1 k: I% O> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
: `' a" g6 R  j/ N+ s" [6 K> 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.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
  A: _+ G) Y! h  J: w> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
$ _- x( K- ?3 v# n2 J/ `' U> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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% |! |) B" |9 h> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
1 r+ i% g( Y+ U0 k& ~, ~/ z> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
/ X- t5 X, c6 e+ V> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
7 Y; ?5 P: _- {, Y8 O> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
* b, \0 D2 j  ?8 y' p> 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
: W$ H, \4 m, N4 G, N. e> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
  i2 N7 {" u) o8 ?6 z0 ]9 x> 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
6 ~9 n0 X! ^' J> 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'
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> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
0 x6 ^. b. k5 z: t> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
> 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
> 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,
> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
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4 b# s" Q/ l$ l  r5 H3 j0 r' q/ o> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
5 P" L8 G3 ]. N+ \- v> 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
> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
) S1 s) l: x  |, u0 b# a> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
! m8 S& D6 _; \6 l> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
8 b3 O0 n% V' A: \# b9 V> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
7 ], P8 j" L" E0 k> 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
+ J5 p; H. p# `4 q' u2 O- m> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
0 h7 q2 m% Q# U( c/ M> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
7 n, I- r+ E# q1 n6 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
> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
! `# U* K; V: w% X0 ]> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
' Z* Q4 ^6 ?6 x+ e3 D) H( ]: c> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
# D' @: c9 O( E" S! ~6 i5 E6 Y> 1. Delete
* d' M4 @" b5 w  ?> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.