Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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- t/ }# z6 Q2 ~! u1 Q5 O> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
/ V/ Z0 l2 y2 b0 U; {> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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> 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
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
0 r: ]; s7 a8 ^, Q& ~& W; }> staff, he offered a question:
>
0 b/ r6 z5 N0 [9 y" a7 q! K/ A! A* e> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
; l8 y2 G- W& {6 P8 H3 F> 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.
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6 P5 q, \3 E; f! m" A$ A# ~> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
5 x8 w# p1 P4 {  z% ^& 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
; Q5 z  i( z+ I) @0 `2 w+ j> treat that child.'
>
0 g' X+ C0 w) E, L> Then he told the following story:
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+ b1 |9 ~7 O  P$ j  f3 E1 Y> 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
$ O4 A+ s* I! i8 I8 `* j5 g0 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,
- \' q# |5 ?" N0 I. Q" T  ^> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
  G1 ~1 W& b+ |2 q/ V& J( _, w" C> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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> 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
& i1 @* b) P8 Y. u, q' P> 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
> inning.'
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; e7 L8 f# \! K# D& ]; F" J5 O$ T* U> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
( [  T# x% X8 Y" J, e! Y6 M> 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
. b" r$ M- @3 j# d> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
1 E$ K6 [) k' {8 N> 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
( g) F0 p6 T1 z- s4 ~, [/ Q> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
& t1 W+ E2 F7 i* E& c3 z: _> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
3 Y1 K4 c/ h& }> 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
) D3 X+ O9 I% \1 k$ {* S( l  _> next at bat.
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4 Q2 j5 y7 U2 X: B0 }9 i> 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,
) d% B: @8 n6 V9 \& d1 s% r> much less connect with the ball.
: G, x% Z$ y. S" q1 A5 E! q1 x! d> 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
) w1 ~+ L* a5 [! C5 f% F> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
: w# }* u. j1 ]" A* l% c' B: B* R> 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
. ^3 N* X  C4 D6 t> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
/ G, \5 d7 Y8 s1 U* A) R& y> 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.
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> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
6 _' s- n! N" g4 z% |> 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,
9 M; d( t* u. c& x% V> wide-eyed and startled.
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) f( _: S9 e1 E> 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
  x$ @$ k  {; u+ Z( z6 t> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
, U- K9 Y7 y8 i+ c> 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.
>
2 s& |" E+ o: N2 v, ?9 k6 a> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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; k+ |% \! R# c7 u) }; N6 O2 \> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
* ^! @7 Q7 J2 e> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
) ^9 D4 r3 N5 [! v5 U> 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
4 x" m" V1 I6 R; j. o3 @> game for his team.
>
) B, v- b" w: C2 X) v8 t% p8 c" @. J> '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
> into this world'.
>
% Y1 u- {2 n/ V/ c, p> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
' T* i* D! a8 _8 w) w3 e: j> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
& v1 j, F. q: i% r: g6 g. L) H/ E" h> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
, g7 ~2 d/ \1 ?% m4 X* a3 X8 p> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
4 w0 ~6 H* L  _> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
/ |+ k5 F+ d8 V, L- l3 H> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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% ]4 I+ q, C0 e2 O0 E0 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
3 K" ~$ U1 n) o  ^$ B5 L  {7 f+ t> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
) V- V9 T+ r2 q' K> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
( t/ v, S6 h! |, N! U" m> 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
2 n& w) _* ~1 i& _) q, Q( s  e% z> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
  M8 M  i/ Q, e> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
( E7 P+ X6 i8 _" b/ E3 n> 2. Forward
>
/ Q- N; Z$ ]0 [0 q- e4 i/ i, E: [> May your day, be a Shay Day.