Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
7 D- \% ?7 ~& F) l" T, R! E1 k) ~> 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,
9 N1 o( @5 |- t. k6 b$ X; C& _# L> 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
6 [  c: Q0 A$ [3 B, A$ f7 ^. u, R> 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
> 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.
>
  S+ T1 F. n8 {& p> 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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> Then he told the following story:
>
7 P) O  {& ?6 b) t> 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,
5 n, R+ |0 a& ]1 X6 G- P> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
0 S# @1 P7 y: j; w  n: A> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
2 Q+ a# S, j- T* R; t> 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
. G( h% f; ^1 W! }- }- d+ H" I> 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
* c; E7 }6 S2 n4 W> inning.'
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' g3 e1 [. z; H* b9 @  \> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
2 m( v! k# P9 ?- ]% L, }, h> 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
> 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
> 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
, C, z. o2 r- W, L/ h7 q$ 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
> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
5 Q4 o; K7 S3 G% X( `" [> next at bat.
>
> 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
# c) G4 }8 \2 A7 K& x> 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
> 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
% _8 i+ J2 X1 d> 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.
* D" d/ d* @' ]" c! y( X4 H> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
8 R' V# M9 U6 w3 e" b> right back to the pitcher.
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0 O/ b& }9 _9 C> 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.
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; d& `% m% z/ q5 {, C" q> 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
5 X0 z& [( p$ g+ }> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
  q" w8 H8 P5 e& n6 t> wide-eyed and startled.
>
+ t" B7 B% E: `% Q( n> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
1 @! }* w1 g& L" Q# R6 f> 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
! U9 f. ^, R2 E6 z) y) f; K> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
* s- z& q  W# Z> 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
; i/ D& R5 R7 z> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
. j# R- q( v/ ~) b+ m: `5 |> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
% q" Q' A# ?* x' [> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
5 k, K5 l+ }1 |) H' ~7 F% i5 @* A> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
" H5 \+ _% b5 s5 B1 u' W1 \> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
6 g% j2 g2 r, W: ~> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
- T" K, _- Z* H2 b- c8 T> 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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$ H( H/ f& t3 |* N> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
- v/ t' s7 p3 E2 H5 R> '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
2 n) C0 W& K3 |4 p% B> 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!
>
1 t) x5 ?( z, ?> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
9 a: x: e) x/ |/ a> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
6 E* N: V- M* ]9 Y. P; E> 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.
>
6 U7 `" A4 a( Y7 d> 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
1 |. J" ]! [9 W7 h$ e- b> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
1 l, [# |4 Y, e. ^" W> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
, H: a( G6 ^& q3 C: _, {> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
8 P! X3 J1 a( T5 H3 e, i! x, I> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
" F' G" G; E( q8 B& S  e+ ]> 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
0 c4 `- d1 e) ?( b; f7 R> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
7 p8 q) ^- {/ ^) F2 P> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
6 V( a; Z& H5 ]. t& }1 M+ D; p> You now have two choices:
0 m9 [# }& }4 U: x/ j6 ~> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.