Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
( b1 A' |6 y1 z> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
/ T- h0 r: @) l! O; A+ e> same choice?
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3 j6 T0 g  h' Y' ~* c1 L7 j* 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
> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
3 d/ q8 w7 ^6 D> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
& C/ s# [% W4 c8 q> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
* I% w" W3 t- m9 h* s> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
! _6 J% E6 y$ o2 r> 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
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
- K0 I4 D0 j& U> Then he told the following story:
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; x- S* E' e3 _9 _' Q  h> 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
# m# z; ~0 I! l# r, y, @9 U- @> 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
# I7 s0 [! }; e4 @> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
) ]) T& u% t) ^> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
$ j( B/ W9 n6 f6 D+ V> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
+ L+ t1 l" |! W8 D0 ?> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
$ t8 f% H" a( o6 \# ^" V& i" V> guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
! W! g! f+ f7 w8 I# B( }2 Q' M5 r) h> 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
  t$ y% d: S6 h8 o+ [> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
; y  `- e% G& e* i: @> 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
$ Z# s2 b% Z- r1 [) O# r> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
3 D$ Q4 P! y, {7 d8 j% h> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
8 f+ J8 i5 Q: e8 c6 Q9 ]# z* ?4 x> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
; E# s: K1 g% H& ]+ |- Z> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
3 {& r# u0 G8 M> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
9 [1 r, P& q7 E0 v  ?- r1 d+ D> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
+ h: O2 R$ B, A> 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
  a; W/ `, [3 U3 u4 d3 c& A> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
6 C+ N( {: [. o1 b( c# M> 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
, S7 d  Z9 i! @! K( m, N" C> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
) J* y+ h* R8 ~: p$ m0 N> right back to the pitcher.
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  J2 a) F8 G& S5 U/ I) D  p  Y4 g# v' 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
> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> 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
1 R+ q' r& h# I/ s. Z1 V> 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,
> 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
2 n: O3 e6 a, L6 S4 e/ a> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
2 ?0 o$ A+ c, a4 w& G> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
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> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
9 m5 `# d3 e! P( e; D$ o1 `1 }" \> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
3 z7 W! a3 i$ b, V) W; `> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
5 `" u  ]* N* D. s> game for his team.
>
8 G$ R2 V- i; b9 T, k3 l5 a> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
3 d+ b: c9 ?( ~* j" e; A5 D4 T> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
& X% h9 x& t2 c3 x> 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!
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6 T! F4 F* {: u+ K% W6 D( h> AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes
. v7 g0 s+ u5 v. u- G; |1 `$ Z> through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending
$ G2 ]$ W# v  d- u+ e> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
9 G" |3 ?% D) g9 O> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
7 v" Q# y4 h1 P> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
5 D3 J, ?0 b. m$ A3 x( k( }>
> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
: ^( @* a4 q  ^. I> 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
- Z* `+ m( w) r+ x/ b> sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have
. Z, @3 ^3 J+ B% z3 L% b- O> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
8 c' ^  o7 G: b$ ^> 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
) c" l4 r) e* Y. _. S> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
! o0 d) E* V8 [1 K' v$ W. R0 H' d* ^> bit colder in the process?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
( o& O" ?; W1 b( ?; q6 t; j> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
# ?4 i3 ]! p7 L+ j+ q$ }> You now have two choices:
' M* Q, M3 p. ?0 F: }> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.