Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
5 M2 m- F) p3 F7 W+ Y: r5 w3 i>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
- ?# K) [, q1 ]> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
2 e' D; i9 J& z; N8 c; U> same choice?
, ^! I  T. b0 h>
1 C4 p% g0 ~" P4 g8 b( h4 G> 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
) l- p9 s  a, o. D% |/ R" N> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
2 k: x( d) B1 [# g( i1 ~> staff, he offered a question:
! {( X: ^3 N) x* ^) [>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
' _+ c4 v4 K" H- M8 U7 g> 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?'
>
" x; ~$ m5 b0 E9 L; n) D> The audience was stilled by the query.
4 J# K# |1 \. @( i: e0 {>
> 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.'
, T( w, X. k( ]>
> Then he told the following story:
% }+ i+ \! E" T! t5 }; _>
> 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
% V0 R+ U- f6 `9 Z( S0 [> 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
* ^/ s6 X. h; M$ T$ y3 V> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
+ u2 T; ~* g. ]* {$ k> 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
6 f1 B  b, D( A# `" k6 z0 h> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
# x8 p4 M* ?  |/ h; m2 L9 Z> inning.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
* y4 ^" z5 j# D) W0 ?) k> 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
1 T, a$ }0 j0 ^8 h2 Z> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
& C4 s' X8 a! b6 d! D+ M  v> 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
> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
& o  ~$ ^, u9 b7 q> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
4 b: l! ]/ q* R* }8 k> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
- b; e' y: a$ _3 n4 ], i> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
* C9 n! n+ l+ M! i" R! q: o) N> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
8 W, A% ^0 t$ q6 U6 P> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
; I) R, T; Z( \* }6 Q6 i> 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
- J5 u$ N* g3 U& @( p: Q6 C( O> 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
+ E0 K1 L" _5 }; B) ^! ?> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
: f- q  {, Z( c> 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.
' V  X+ [! X6 U* y3 @>
, y; U1 D7 ^. T* }6 @- T6 l> 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.
>
! I* N7 U8 J7 x) O> 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
; \8 x. _' c1 ^: v> 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
# {" x- |5 x! j( q6 `2 }6 C% c> 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
> 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,
3 v; Q) P: \2 Y& D% y, J> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
. F8 @& Y  l% @5 n: z$ a1 a> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
& h1 O  ]4 b9 X2 @4 A* A> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
7 d' r& Z# s) ~6 E: V8 t> 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!'
>
* l7 u2 l1 v# v+ M& \5 Y2 p> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
5 g8 g  p2 A% U2 h; M> 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,
) T: T! w; y4 W5 k) O' J4 c; K> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
" v' q: |" Y& o% f4 _> into this world'.
>
  q2 S  ]* P  D1 x3 L  J1 B/ z> 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!
" R0 B% V$ `8 L+ Z! m/ r>
> 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
' A8 q' A! d* p% K# s& b% A> 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.
>
# S: I3 W3 o( R4 Z9 x> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
4 k( I! R8 f. V# R0 S/ V> 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
5 V# u3 _" u0 h& Q3 P- g9 ]> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
4 [, @+ e3 W+ D. V2 f> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> 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
> bit colder in the process?
1 A9 `4 q* m$ ^( M>
' K2 w" w# F: q0 s6 t# {9 o$ @> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
2 Y, |. C- Y7 r>
> You now have two choices:
: L; v' k1 m- D3 ^> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
. j: H3 n. D, g/ R>
0 U7 n: P0 V) L* P" m$ B> May your day, be a Shay Day.