Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
>
> 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?
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' s4 x/ c- Q' k> At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children,
4 ?7 X+ T+ u# w# J/ L- k> 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
2 Z9 @5 Y8 Q8 J; k5 o8 m: [' F> 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
. y# S( W4 E+ M, U> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
; T- o) C  f. h> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
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1 |0 A6 T' b" a' I> Then he told the following story:
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- M+ a" I7 G3 _. J4 Z6 ?> 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
: p. A& i" P5 f> 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.
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" e1 O- z1 ?: r, Y> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
7 T) u3 }- [8 z4 _> 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
0 ~' `& D4 @& ~" E> 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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  Q) M6 Y. F/ ?# O' t) L> 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
- z' m# W0 x& G& S# ^! ]1 v0 x> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
& C; ]- U: T& x4 `> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
, B' B# o' _, S9 i> obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
' m# f3 W) L! ~9 R2 C/ t9 g3 @3 L> 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
4 K4 F. ]* w0 g* N; \& `$ ~5 X> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
& T3 w3 M& b' s> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
  k7 Y2 ^- `3 P8 ]5 w> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
) N0 {$ P  V  p: S; w" m> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
% D) j2 n, }& \4 A8 H> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
5 v! a  M" H8 \# Z> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
( p7 s/ p2 b1 n* ?> right back to the pitcher.
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2 y- f  g7 V( ]! _, U> 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.
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> 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
1 Z+ L4 ^7 w: r1 b0 |> 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
# t9 H! j+ x) l6 i> 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
/ o8 q$ O: Q8 v0 w* F6 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
1 M( s! x( h4 b+ C! R! J> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
8 g. w- u7 }. K6 h6 q, C0 f, R> too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's
; g/ ]8 o8 ]* n> head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him
1 x" D& k* X) Z> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
8 @$ ?: r. |2 w! ^> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
- T& X# Z2 Q$ T% Y" w> 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
> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
; s, ~- L9 p! x> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
7 y0 T7 M) ]8 k! P) T: h> 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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> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
  ^$ U, @& e+ M> 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!
>
> 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
8 E1 p2 m8 m+ T* q( d: Z2 B> 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.
>
6 |2 U' t: h: y$ ?> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
; R  H, @" x& s7 F3 k> 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
% C# ]) ~  I' c; S4 M) g+ q: ~  E& S; M> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
" e* j. g. \! H' `> present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and
( V& r. d2 i, h4 {3 v, h> humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little
> bit colder in the process?
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' v; v0 o/ V: G! i> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
" e4 l4 [7 C% J# Y> You now have two choices:
5 Y! C* O) E% V3 r, o> 1. Delete
0 J9 Z8 s2 I  j' Q2 b) K6 P, l5 [% L( ^> 2. Forward
>
> May your day, be a Shay Day.