Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
( [5 u1 b+ d! u1 Y: B8 A6 ^> 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
- Y2 J' R8 U! U& C> same choice?
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" _  w5 l- R8 u> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
( h+ ]! X2 |; Q/ c. |- `) {& s/ N> 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
/ q8 @1 D% e7 U> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
, d% P" O, p: a! b8 j> 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
! j( ]& f( `0 `> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
. ^0 O) O5 |. z" X> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
% C! T4 k7 M  i, ]& b1 G> treat that child.'
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> Then he told the following story:
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# u* Y$ {  u: @: d; I- t> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
1 s, ?9 W6 T1 Y2 |" U4 b8 _> 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
8 Q1 F# c4 n$ o- S/ _> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
# G" e0 Y( j/ [( I5 N" z# e> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
" {1 T5 a! x7 R0 i7 `% k) e& x$ t> 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
% H2 |- L3 Q- q$ x2 K7 E; H! \> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
6 ]! r& j' k# k> 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.'
>
> 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
> 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
> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
& ~+ J9 O0 t. ?. O- C> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
+ [0 _/ s4 d$ g- y2 l/ t> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
; D; |. ~; ]9 v. d* _1 w> next at bat.
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4 y+ E3 p/ ~8 @> 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,
7 i7 x0 K9 I7 I+ ]: F> much less connect with the ball.
' L/ J3 m+ b7 @$ Q. B> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
$ t- \! n5 a) R4 B- v$ f$ T> 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
9 y' {7 W! k) K% Y! o> 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.
8 m7 f/ E! T3 X* g> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
3 s/ {, K3 C9 Q2 }> right back to the pitcher.
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> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
& U* B2 c5 [0 a* ^, x9 \* g> could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been
, J, e( a2 S% _% b. r0 Q> 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
2 f0 K, O- m" {1 ^( G> 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,
- ]: I4 {  E8 l: q9 j> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
' {0 d6 j! A1 x# g> 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
! n1 m3 U( L5 z1 N' O( M/ x> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
. f; t6 W5 u: y9 S, O' {> 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,
: j2 f% s7 {/ R7 X> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
0 Y* l) Q* x# u+ t4 P> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
; ?8 c5 L8 ~2 E2 o> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
! C8 F# k' H& y. ~, R2 y4 A> 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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& f# }, h: t; _+ W: n! V> 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
7 ?  Q: y" W; s& y3 H6 x% Y: Y> 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,
> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
5 S. I# T, C1 C* y8 X8 r( r/ [>
> 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!
>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
) `6 X$ f* Z, x1 ~; H& J> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
' N$ E8 {2 t* X- |; O5 K# y> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
$ E2 ^9 u* c# g9 _> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
( U! k- t* e" s% q# \3 G> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
3 [8 M, Y9 m* o4 z3 m3 c# m> 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
> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
2 I% t  q; U$ E3 b) g> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
! M% \0 z% b# e. T* n> 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
7 n# O- B  k5 U7 t> 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
6 c7 _' P) J3 v9 F7 q- x( b> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
3 x. A( k- y7 R) n> You now have two choices:
2 r2 h8 ^. z4 ~. f> 1. Delete
  ~* c! _  f4 s+ N/ w> 2. Forward
>
  N% {  B- X) z# A( N6 L> May your day, be a Shay Day.