Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
. c9 l3 t& O  N6 w3 d# m1 J> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
. J3 f1 }' m3 e0 N& w! @) D, ]/ ~9 S> same choice?
>
# a% w+ n# M9 c% s> 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
: x1 u# J: {! u> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
# B% w5 m+ Z! h) \- G# b* Z2 p# T>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
  m+ C$ z$ {. b4 W* w> 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?'
>
* L+ Z( w* @7 W) C6 q+ ]# q/ x> The audience was stilled by the query.
2 M/ @+ U+ y0 _>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
) S2 y$ S5 T6 _. O0 Y( G7 i* T> 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.'
>
# Z2 q+ s# ?+ |/ F3 r' v> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
  n1 ~. l! H8 G5 t" e> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
3 b1 U7 U! z, ]1 Y- w> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
  f6 q* U3 P! v+ y) A% X" }> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
7 Y5 }, {' N& H> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
* P( C- r: o4 Z$ K9 d# \- y+ o> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
4 Z) n  `0 X2 d1 v+ T/ Y$ C/ d0 H! Y% l7 p> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
5 e3 I0 T. V0 I# q" B1 G> 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.'
3 ?3 P3 \& n$ m5 R8 H>
5 U# U2 F$ K" J. R3 p* k4 k> 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
! Q- Q' u, R* }0 H: l6 g/ |$ d> 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
/ W1 S) W) t6 N! M> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
) a2 h: k" S( L5 l/ |$ `> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
& G$ {' f1 O8 u# V& U& k5 {> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
3 x; y+ ~2 G2 L8 P& [: X> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
! ~' H7 D; W# N, B: C$ B" S> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
/ n( ^' s- C, |0 }6 M/ n> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
4 W! j5 A  U- {' r1 g# f4 x>
9 K0 D/ `# `- `# s4 V3 [> 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
$ s8 u; y$ t( N+ ], d> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
" I  e' m# i+ v, A7 m6 F/ K' w- ~> 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
" q* M+ p( W* W7 S' f" r1 E> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
( d$ Z6 B- M, H6 t8 d2 ~- G> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
. h5 c6 M0 N' }! }' H4 k> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
/ l2 a, b  b9 [/ Y8 m/ @1 J> right back to the pitcher.
>
% l' n. A" ^4 J; a> 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
  g' h! A3 Q) L$ ~( k( V% N> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
$ j( T" k/ P: d/ w4 @8 _. Y> wide-eyed and startled.
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4 P3 \1 ~5 ?, s7 X* W( B1 E> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
4 @5 Y) a: H  y, I> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
3 `6 F/ F3 `1 @2 O> 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,
) q, D3 P; j" l7 \. q+ Z$ y, h: ?> 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.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
. M/ O. V0 U: o# F) m, b>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
* F8 D7 x" h+ M. u+ ^> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
: k! D- B" N  x> Shay, run to third!'
>
5 [8 r9 E( I* i> 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.
>
4 J( a% \* z9 q> '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
' R; E* X8 l0 u. r* e> into this world'.
5 M/ z6 l. g2 \( C# a+ m6 @>
1 K! \( u! m, l> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
5 ]' n, {: j0 }6 _: E) }4 _* i9 A> 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!
( F+ J+ s9 |9 Q4 R5 ^>
> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
' M0 x1 U8 l6 j( S" g( o> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
1 C! u# J* w: i0 K& c> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
2 g2 q1 F" b1 ^$ G9 n> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
' E  n" C+ O2 p: [> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
; ?# O' g$ n- h0 D> 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
! C& w. g+ ?+ ]8 {6 v; x1 x1 e7 Z> 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
5 b8 T7 ?7 G7 k6 q6 X> 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?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
* C4 R/ e8 O; B> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
3 j# @2 p0 K. s% V  t>
9 s% l7 O$ U4 [' i5 S$ F> You now have two choices:
$ S( T7 A1 T; @. C7 g* q> 1. Delete
9 r' ]6 u  m2 a> 2. Forward
>
* g  H; B+ Y+ m+ {> May your day, be a Shay Day.