Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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
3 U2 F* W( u3 T5 W9 c, n5 a$ [> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
, |2 x% q! Q: d/ [0 w' V> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
( T% ^- n  p9 T# r, T& i# p> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
0 R5 d# f* E' B9 @& ^7 l3 Y1 D> natural order of things in my son?'
>
( B+ O: G8 R( Y0 D4 @( u; f- ^> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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5 |% P) C9 o* g% K> Then he told the following story:
>
4 b) w0 ~& F3 S> 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
> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
# N6 |* _5 u7 A  Y, |% Q  n> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> 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
9 d8 U, M& V$ ^0 s> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
/ N7 V  t1 ?" [. ~% \+ F7 T; Z3 ^& t( K( t: x> inning.'
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> 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
, t( ?- G3 L. f. f! H> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
  K& t, F/ i, M2 P> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
: s' r, d% d5 T> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
4 s) @; R; s" V; V1 `! ^3 u* b> 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
; ?4 t4 s, U$ B> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
# l9 K2 T1 a/ R) c" l7 _> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
6 D6 t. I4 s) q0 d, V+ W> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
; z9 X% H5 B2 E; f> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
7 o+ D& u8 J' @/ ^/ K* w> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
* @- e' u1 ]: K+ b. U4 J9 P> 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
* u6 n) a6 p" U& c> 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.
>
> 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,
> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
8 A1 D7 _8 S+ q* Z; _5 L> 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
( P1 z) J% }1 y; h+ W1 ^> 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
8 c  Y: Y+ Y  |* C# \( o> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
6 U" D+ M3 I' Z7 c- c1 W> circled the bases toward home.
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- I) F4 @. _* g; Z: C/ N> 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
> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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> 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.
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/ S+ S) f$ `' a$ A* u& {8 F4 x> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
+ M" D, c' Q+ U( _9 D( {4 Z: y% B> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
) ?/ [, S0 y% }8 ?, ]> into this world'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
  x* @6 F, D( u; y/ z, H6 L> 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!
>
) V8 F9 ?+ o; X% q/ @: k> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
% a9 [2 ]# s% c* g> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
: F7 E- @- B; ^4 v> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
& d. p! `1 C$ l5 |& y) l- p> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
- i4 w3 h6 `' j. l> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
# T+ e% r& ^; S9 l( y> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
7 B5 y* c3 g. b& o- C> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
3 ]1 d, \$ s$ h. v+ |! D4 W> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
8 T7 W: m2 c% {1 B- X- R> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
5 Q6 `9 O! q3 \& c0 _& [- J- T> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
0 }# o( I5 ~! a- Y9 G& `> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
( f6 H8 K' u  x+ V> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.