Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
$ ]" P+ L" P5 N* N7 |> 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
; N- X" e0 l, H7 C8 p> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
, @2 C: ]6 o$ [5 U6 ~' p  {+ M> staff, he offered a question:
>
2 m* I  D- i# X! y: U+ T: Q> '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?'
# J* r9 e5 `4 A. S7 Z( h2 }>
& }& V3 J! c; u6 D* ~> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
4 h# ?0 Z+ W- ~) ^8 {> 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& g% _3 ?8 E2 j5 K- x% Q  R> treat that child.'
>
+ z7 v& ?6 L5 t; b. S> Then he told the following story:
>
> 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
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
7 C7 }$ p8 v' A1 n1 c8 A5 N> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
. z" m' N; ~! T9 p> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
5 r! F5 K, E8 @3 j7 V0 \> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
0 m* l. d$ ~% l* Z> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
5 ?) M* }, v4 U! C8 _> 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
" U% s6 o" G. B/ o4 k) }/ J" X> inning.'
/ u1 z2 F- T& q: D9 A; b9 l>
, D5 b. N" \9 u3 A2 r> 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
) n* R4 e  b8 d> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
7 g4 h7 g. S, A9 @> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
$ @) |" s* a, ~9 V$ h( c> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
' E4 Y, H2 O7 k4 [: j8 k> 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
* M! k2 E; g7 D0 R# O> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
; t! o3 V: D5 X0 J2 w: [> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
8 R  \( [* |& l* `# u$ F% h1 o> next at bat.
7 c$ t6 |- d1 M: i* N>
> 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
) F$ W4 `1 {0 t% N* s> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
3 T6 ?1 F$ I2 ^5 o& b1 K> 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
$ ]8 t5 z% X% l/ J> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
& W! K" c1 i) M$ x' [" U, u- T3 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.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
/ ?1 d7 n- Z" H2 e+ l: B$ S>
> 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
3 {- h5 W9 `1 Q; g' z" y' K9 o/ o> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
; p. o. n8 W+ g3 o2 Q* v; V> 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
+ c; ~9 g; `) r: v3 c1 P> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
3 G( p) p% q1 ^1 `> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
8 f; l9 ?! W, }! h> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
- y2 q" o0 ]  M2 i2 Q> 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,
/ _8 ?+ p# m  u( X  o. T6 w> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
# l5 f$ C1 I! A; a( `> 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'
>
6 A" S" q6 e2 S9 C> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
/ K1 B+ _* n% w: N. o> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
7 b& o1 Z. Z0 ]" y! Q4 j/ j3 c' w> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
& J2 s' K. o8 w1 X# I/ W( l> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
8 r9 u4 R9 z; |( q* z! A1 A9 _> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
> game for his team.
. W. \( {* K7 Q: n>
, H- e3 W2 }; W( z. R( E> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
6 b5 u' @+ ]( Z  a- T, x- U> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
* J5 G: T/ ]% o- ^3 L3 B> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
, k7 i* u; c* ]1 z> 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!
>
3 ?, w( `, i% f/ @+ D8 z3 B> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
; i& o" P) K, w> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
- |# v& ^0 j: f( B% T4 e9 m2 E> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
3 v% J1 `# l; W  g+ q( r> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
. f; E% e( n$ l5 }; u> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
- y; |, ~. G, J1 K$ K>
* [6 E; @( [  l> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
5 v) q3 z- H7 d; P" J> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
! [7 Q1 y5 P" M* J5 f> '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
7 w+ h0 a+ t8 l  y% m$ L6 {7 K> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
: b" I- {( q* V6 d1 E% D> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
3 ]2 m& ?# i: w1 @* Z> 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
+ B" f. f9 a' H# X5 A- W> bit colder in the process?
9 r$ p6 y3 Q1 |+ e>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
$ w4 a) V) ^- l2 ]! @> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
9 G5 n% ~/ }- T, _>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
0 Q1 c  H! w8 t% w# z$ q0 O> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.