Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
) C* v9 Y% p( g% ~; @! ]" Z> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
> same choice?
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> 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
> 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
> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
4 ?; c8 l8 ~/ g. F+ j, k> natural order of things in my son?'
>
* v2 N  G" H/ S" g  {) ~8 s9 \> 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.'
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1 I, ~6 o8 \) l7 l- r' E3 M> 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
4 P+ {6 `" z7 {* A6 n* _; A' p> 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$ S2 h! F2 ?2 k& I> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
3 g' @$ t2 w# `" z+ y! M> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
/ q, I6 v! m, s' e0 u, ]> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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2 q: z5 ?/ v! y9 x9 C, M8 f6 t> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
3 H, O# C% O) E8 j; E> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
" V4 l" L$ M( |# g) E3 c9 Q> 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.'
>
> Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a
! C5 T: P% {7 i, c( Y$ [" |> team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in
9 O2 R/ C  g# D5 A& o: l: ^> his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
# e! ]# R8 @3 h> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
6 u# f: Y) `8 [; N' W' v* ^) s6 b> 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
> ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the
0 h1 C4 u' H' f1 G, \> 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.
>
1 C1 r: C- E9 ~> At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the
> game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat Everyone knew that a hit was all
4 g; h. l; I4 a+ Y> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
4 J4 T. n6 ]9 P4 a) k0 {1 N% s> 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
> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
- c, k% h0 `4 z8 E> 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.
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' v: s( m1 w0 A7 U' t5 x> The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and
) A% Z5 R) R* D5 q9 f. [# b& v> 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
3 r. p; ?* I: H( @. 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
, M" ?) m& E+ F! _> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
' B& v! ]6 M5 \8 T1 D> 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
3 u3 q/ D' K/ J" M8 U> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
% A( j9 Z; r! Q6 ^6 H4 d> the ball ... The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to
: _5 X' O7 P7 C* h" A; Y> 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,
% b( e+ }6 I, i/ v1 \> 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
: O: ~/ H# Z8 A3 g/ m> circled the bases toward home.
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> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
2 b+ P9 P  @5 T. z5 B) E> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
  [! l* z1 K( O( w  P! c7 |7 I> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
/ Z7 d3 ~, ?% Z( b3 A> 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
> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
$ P# W- d, w: Z0 v> game for his team.
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; [0 O* ~7 u, g3 W2 F6 K> '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
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" |( }, m& X& d/ C6 A> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
$ R2 ~- ?; B9 t: k3 i  G. D! H> 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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- [' j+ o% p: F$ _> 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
: f7 e) d" x4 g! J  [) Q> 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.
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: o) D2 L- A9 O5 V8 t1 G> 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
' c0 Z0 w* W& |0 P> '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
; J8 A5 l; Y% i7 ]3 _9 a4 d/ a> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
3 g- L9 l. R. {6 k$ c4 E> 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?
>
> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
: q; S0 ?9 Z0 ^$ ]* m) T> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.