Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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+ G2 r7 m+ ]; S$ u> 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
> same choice?
>
- h9 |0 @: j/ {, s7 r. d> 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
- [4 G  C; g/ d8 ]$ {> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
1 V/ x! h* `$ ]: r* e> staff, he offered a question:
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7 _3 L0 ?% [7 q> '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?'
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' F" N- h) O% c8 s  @> The audience was stilled by the query.
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> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
* \0 _/ {- e8 Q7 P1 a( M6 n- V> 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
+ n% w. b: ~+ e) P2 ~: t$ a2 ^> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
! [* @' e: v; W9 F0 Y) g6 H9 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,
> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
0 o* E' ^, C7 l9 Z; r> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
5 {: s4 A$ t0 z' W3 Z> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
> 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
* a% q6 ?- Z, H: z$ o> inning.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
  |# `$ B2 t( q$ Y: r+ a> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
5 g! i1 @3 I0 Y4 T0 Z9 S> 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
0 T; Q+ V. n+ o: A/ H& z> 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
7 A" R/ J  [$ O  M) I" E> next at bat.
>
  B) j. j6 M5 o> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
& e. g( J/ q5 [7 ^, B* r" q4 Y> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
! A% v+ l% f/ O7 n  G) e: H> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
9 U* N; k5 s1 F/ H> 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
( P7 d4 @. Y) b* w' Z4 {, Z9 B6 K3 ~5 Y> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
6 w' i1 K' T! B( ?5 l9 O9 T5 P> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
! S% U6 u9 @' S7 ?1 `# q> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
: U, F& w/ g! R( K2 F> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
, Q& R/ f5 A* Z! b4 G> 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
> out and that would have been the end of the game.
>
; h. f5 T3 S7 z> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
( x) ^+ y! T9 |% l) g) t> 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,
+ F; b& @6 t/ z5 Z& u' b> wide-eyed and startled.
>
6 }# n% z& u5 w$ J; A+ h/ Z> 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
> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
( d4 s& U8 A7 W5 c! n0 r- z$ Y* c> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
& a% H1 V. A: }9 s! ~> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
3 O$ U5 L7 Z: h7 f# ~) K> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
, n4 P  e( H! q( \. W# B8 @3 |7 o> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
> circled the bases toward home.
>
. Z9 _9 g( d  Q( s+ l1 j, r> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
  Y) u3 i$ u) i5 r9 b2 T> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
; r  I' l# a6 t> Shay, run to third!'
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( R, A  Q8 Q; ~. ^! R> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
0 w0 U' ^% ?, y" }: n6 d; a> 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
. i% @/ v. C. j. m7 ]1 c> game for his team.
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> '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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+ f( |) l3 i% I  p) c> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
9 ]# z, E1 ?* d! C> 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, F9 L& l8 O. F> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
4 U3 t+ H$ K: l* h+ D! X, j> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
. j+ T: J* j# j; C1 ~+ O> 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
0 D: _6 K1 q: W/ B5 v4 y> probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the
3 q/ ?2 p# Q. z  d, c' I# E> '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
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
" H3 K3 C1 `5 G( c& t> 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?
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" Q( [& c% U$ F( B" I4 L. R- \> A wise man once said every society is judged by
& K  `: n' y1 T5 X- A& v> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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2 w$ @) l- a! M( S8 G7 k0 e> You now have two choices:
  R, V, M  S1 l2 l, v3 Q> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
- ?' q5 s4 J+ q4 c  j> May your day, be a Shay Day.