Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
3 ^/ h: w0 s5 S1 _5 h* ~2 U> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
>
3 N# D  ^0 o, _> 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
! I% l) W/ Z* A$ u  d$ J2 ]> staff, he offered a question:
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$ _; e3 H: |% ]6 D8 a8 M> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
+ _- V" r- p% A) X+ S. Y3 k> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
+ }2 ^. H8 ]! f+ f7 H& t7 {# n0 y> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
4 J7 ?( f9 B- T> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
" @  i! B, T8 B> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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> 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
* H# R! q; i# z5 e& _! N> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
8 L' W: e7 Y: D- ?% }> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
4 ?) [$ {6 I  C$ O! ?& D( |# C> 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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! p* a2 T4 Y# s+ d: ^( \9 w> 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
- f5 }5 c- l5 p4 j/ L  c" z> 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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! ?8 ?# v4 X5 U; ?7 H/ F. V9 }> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
5 E* j! a5 x/ ?> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
9 o" T# x$ D# x> 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
7 M7 v8 d( v  |) U3 c> 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
1 ~* c- E8 |2 T& R$ O; `; T> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
/ r& Q0 G2 J9 D; [- A5 F9 g) _> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
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> 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,
- i3 \) n& L3 g% r> much less connect with the ball.
  U) `' U: s2 m7 f5 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
4 T1 ?! d6 V& c> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
8 ~! T' `1 R. S/ z> 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
2 g; I- p2 K/ J! C> right back to the pitcher.
>
" q. y- h* _0 G3 f+ n> 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 z, V0 U1 X) U5 B# l" N; n  x  r> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
( Y2 H$ X" X0 [6 P> 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
8 q1 A8 m  Y& `; o/ v% z  C> 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,
- l1 j4 h9 N$ F4 b6 k> wide-eyed and startled.
>
( X9 y! n  N* y5 _> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
/ b: l+ y: L  c> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
; M) ?* F) c+ r6 q' w> 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
0 j. N; _! I( i5 k* Z( `) J> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
9 p& W1 [# J! b9 V6 I0 U, r; k> 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.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> 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!'
>
3 o% s: n$ [8 j8 S, P1 R> 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
" l9 {; a$ w/ `/ L! q+ ?3 a+ F) t> game for his team.
>
$ y& x! C  P  P> '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'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
$ j9 t' M7 _! p! o$ K- J  r$ m7 c- v- k> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
+ G% \; D# g9 S2 m> 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
* ?, H* L% |# _+ P> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
. w! D4 D' S* D5 c* k> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
( n6 P' U) K3 h) B1 i. }3 [> 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
1 D5 t; ^% z- j: T" i' u  O- b> 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
) F7 [) N6 {7 C( Z8 O0 v* x> 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?
>
$ Y# S$ ~$ d+ {' k; L" b9 B/ y> A wise man once said every society is judged by
+ v3 N+ x9 s: I" D> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
4 w  u2 z4 m$ l> 1. Delete
8 G! t0 j+ F4 @) E8 z> 2. Forward
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4 Z  S) j; j: ^2 k5 l6 c8 Q0 o> May your day, be a Shay Day.