Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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) [' E2 _& x* j7 j% O: m> 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?
>
> 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
9 q( H1 Y4 Z, }$ [) V9 n> staff, he offered a question:
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> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
) {) X1 J" g: S! {3 Z1 A7 D+ D2 N, U2 d> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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. u4 `; f7 ]* j4 `> The audience was stilled by the query.
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0 N5 s9 {! r' ~% k9 e) h> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
0 x) h: A+ F7 y- ~> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
> Then he told the following story:
>
> Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were
' N0 |  l" _. o8 `4 H( H. j> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
% W8 q8 |, ]2 e# q# K> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
# }& j7 b9 r! Y+ j> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
) p9 h- j) z7 g0 I5 O$ o> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> 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
> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
- H5 i, z" v* B" U: D> said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I
& {( w. I' D( p/ [; T6 \> 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
  G, X; z. M' |1 d, _+ x> 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 z$ b8 U0 J1 W; `; X> 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
, s* F8 Z; V/ f: C9 ]0 s" p" }> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
3 ]) W' u* I7 P% A/ M' b> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
! _+ v/ b7 y" T% \$ I1 P> 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,
  W2 X4 x# P( U( b6 b3 f> much less connect with the ball.
! L1 Y3 ~7 V9 s7 [> 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
# E' }% T. m* G8 T1 p9 i> 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.
> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
- _) G6 T0 K: s7 N+ A" z, k6 G> 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
- s2 f4 |& Q  U( S& R, E: p' O> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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0 G% T  u9 k- C2 F& R7 b> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
$ W: D1 t! \+ G6 g/ x> 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,
; C  _3 R- V& q> 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
9 f9 R* e, b7 {# M. H> 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
: S2 g- @9 V, ^9 r5 h- V$ \> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
; B: G7 W, N, ~* T) _. S& H> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
. k8 F# S! g  }% w5 p) H> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
$ n0 h5 m! t% d, E# K> circled the bases toward home.
>
. K! S$ C+ A- Z( a> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
" r$ J) s* G! W' e9 f! `) y$ Q0 p> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
8 z, R( A. K$ M' [2 ~7 |& \$ K> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
. K! |) a% s7 U/ l3 w4 ?- y5 }> Shay, run to third!'
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+ }" ^6 x* ~' d, R> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
7 A' k: q# D: [> 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.
>
/ V/ k, S9 t) M3 f) v> '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'.
>
0 Q1 l" t0 R( s/ y" ?9 k> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
/ m+ E$ a# B. ~) h  P> 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!
>
$ ?3 i6 d. e& ]! V! A6 |& G' }> 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
5 `& n  M' J, L' `8 ?, Q  O: }> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
; u5 Z3 V. C( @8 A5 @- g' }* U> 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
> '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
, B" q  c% c6 e9 e; Y% {: I! a> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
2 U# ]% X1 _: V' A  ^1 A$ \> 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?
>
3 H( \) M# h9 y4 H% S! `8 i> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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& o0 n$ w; }! {> You now have two choices:
# O+ Y. H2 U1 n4 v> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
3 H) L# `/ x( j) q> May your day, be a Shay Day.