Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> 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
8 U* J/ A" }1 R8 d' m> same choice?
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9 a& d7 K' H  _. C* n9 y" ]" W> 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
0 v/ J: L( Z+ C6 I1 b> forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated
, g' m9 w7 T. z4 U3 \> staff, he offered a question:
>
; y$ d# b( K& z  S+ R/ \* M> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
5 n0 @  v8 m% ]3 A( 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
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
  }6 H4 Z: E6 O! f) |, y3 A* M$ B> The audience was stilled by the query.
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6 _- ^! i0 `2 `, W1 J! ?> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
: Y0 u7 D* D7 I4 a5 z- r; ^' {' T5 A> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
2 ]1 e' M9 ], A! a> Then he told the following story:
>
> 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
* B/ B* w# R/ V& E2 W+ [- }4 W> 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.
>
6 t% n, A9 m; @4 O& U; Y! m+ @> 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
> 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.'
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! y8 y% X) k5 d- K3 I! Y& A> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
: ?/ q+ ~% y; n7 M5 `' v& y> 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
* y, T) |( e) T( x* s> 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
4 P- G' T2 T) y$ W* i+ ?% `  i5 D> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
> 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
> next at bat.
>
> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
* q  X$ c$ u; S> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
! b% B2 z- Y& n> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
% K+ E' D8 R& u' v: p2 D> 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
# F+ d/ T- c0 J: E$ F> in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make
! V& L/ @' w6 y- r> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
; `) y  a; X1 z0 r$ S: n  Y7 D1 T> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
; k# Y# g- G+ i3 ?$ e5 S% }> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
7 W: }' g# P5 o. n; T, k> right back to the pitcher.
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; l: q0 {$ {; s! y+ [> 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.
>
9 W6 i( C+ h$ ]6 \, U9 K> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
$ l3 e! x3 g; ~& q, o+ L> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
  s. }; f# @3 }. u- t: U7 C> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
5 R: S+ ~& D7 z5 E% p  V2 |6 F> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
> wide-eyed and startled.
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" c1 H. D2 M0 D> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
) h1 k8 z! M& S+ E! q> 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
( ^: y" Z$ q3 N* z1 ^. O* c> be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the
" c8 P) o2 R) O/ _> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
$ {( K7 i' L% z+ p3 u> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
" V: S8 W! Z/ v9 h> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
3 ]- g( H' ]3 [* {) c> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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> 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!
+ B6 S1 R0 W3 |> Shay, run to third!'
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> 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
' i; p( U) S* Y, Q! M> 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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) u" E& m8 X8 S5 p7 A7 Y. }+ t> '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
$ G/ y6 i0 I$ y> into this world'.
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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
> 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!
>
' d' x7 i1 v" o, {/ W> 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
> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
5 ?7 A9 Y& X( @- y% w6 x4 c> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> 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
0 {; t% S& H" _& v; {> '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
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
3 m: F+ [/ L6 ]2 X/ j0 f5 g> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
" c" m6 Z& {; H7 ~) k/ }' F/ L1 W> 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
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
> 2. Forward
>
3 Y! H6 N8 j1 c2 ~# F* U> May your day, be a Shay Day.