Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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8 |/ g) D; X1 O7 t> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
( J1 v+ {! i9 h. T" R1 w/ G! R> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
2 W* G% A, ^) Q% H# x  B3 W> same choice?
>
> 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
! d- w7 L, r7 \) D> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
> staff, he offered a question:
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/ ?# ?/ s- X4 `- Z> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
7 @( a3 P7 s" D% E. L1 S; P9 S+ ?> 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
4 O$ L; J7 u( u2 y" r  {0 b> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
$ u8 o" F4 B, K' m6 O>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
9 M$ s/ [7 t8 u# R! e! }> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
  s' f! J1 ~( C; `6 i> 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
> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
# ^8 c; f/ c7 r) W8 k/ i7 i> 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
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
+ Z  k3 k; |% x9 `> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
' u5 O& S9 c9 B& \1 o> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
8 t* k- d- e, F8 i> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
: K. j: B( U; A> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
5 B% d, ~/ ]# e' T9 T% t  e; h2 n> 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
: o0 k0 {- ]% g3 z; t" {> 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
3 M- z+ Y3 U& q> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
# i6 d! n8 u2 L; v4 ?: b3 l: Q/ Z> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
- O: n" p$ @  C- E: Q4 A> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
7 _: ~2 G: s+ M. V; E3 e> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
# {: p6 m' d& P. L5 }! W9 t> 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
9 |  B0 U! q" k/ N+ h) y/ c: a  }4 W; d> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
> 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.
' W( H. }1 b2 Z2 M2 R+ E> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
1 [/ {8 M; c: i& c4 T2 T- ~> right back to the pitcher.
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> 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
. _) q7 G. b$ O1 ?  X( s: R& R> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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- z! |7 g, A5 o1 X, O/ m> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
3 F. b' o( e" `7 ~3 q> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
2 S3 K) a7 J8 p- p> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
* Q( M% p2 G  a' N% o0 @> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
3 J. }' D5 E  \6 G3 D> wide-eyed and startled.
>
> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> 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
- ^; R5 ^9 k. Y6 C+ |* M+ b> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
( ^" m" I5 |, v2 T> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
" Z  z! S9 p/ x> 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.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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2 S% h' J1 n6 y' W, [( D> 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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* }0 D$ v) x2 M8 B9 V# G> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
, Z: j3 B4 c" @+ Q> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
9 o' Q) I  l3 [- ~> 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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5 v! T8 ^2 {4 q8 b# B> '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
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
& \8 |- L& T- ~9 t% a0 t  W& N> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
: T0 q( A9 z, X) W( n$ ?> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
# E: n( s: @6 W& W9 {> 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
" G( J: D) Q% E- n# r5 Y( S) j> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
$ p5 l8 J% x" ?) z+ F" H% D* F4 g> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
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> 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
6 f- J: z8 v1 C' C> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
& ]# T) Z* q' Z, r! H* o> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
% q7 V) M" B5 G  p8 Z% Q> 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
4 B+ q/ N6 X, T9 [/ x3 C6 r> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
* e/ g2 C6 L9 Z> bit colder in the process?
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- C6 L. X+ U' O> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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5 T- {8 Z* j. }> You now have two choices:
' X3 c( Q1 Z! U  l+ X0 D> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.