Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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2 U3 U1 K" N' @& J! x" q> 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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> 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
; i5 ?. D$ p' t8 R! u: V( N/ D> 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
3 H2 M& f* c) C3 _( a% }2 ]5 A> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
. s# c5 d) \* h! v> natural order of things in my son?'
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> The audience was stilled by the query.
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4 M/ ?! K1 J8 `8 K3 _, B> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
: A" ]  h9 f. M' t. ]# ], L> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
' a$ `% [' N6 S> treat that child.'
>
> 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
> playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's
$ y9 Y3 d! N/ I> father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their
> team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play,
& N1 T. d" C$ p7 o0 y> it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be
> accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
>
> Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not
3 N5 C2 q" Q+ k9 ]" n0 H4 u> expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and
2 |/ ]8 [6 \* U0 ?. h+ s# r  e! Y: p8 U> 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
- y8 i1 h$ c/ F% v6 d# w> inning.'
>
# G- [( J% j1 C( j6 s> 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
; M! a) C7 {, D! ~> bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
/ J" y) W( T) J" m> behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and
- m' h6 }/ N& d/ \> played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
9 e$ Y' b# u( g- L; U; Z> 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
" T9 b  l8 p; }& T4 L> ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases
3 @3 P# L& f' I. G) `* M$ d7 B9 i; C> loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be
> next at bat.
>
+ m/ v1 J& B. \) x: c$ L+ ]6 I  J3 y> 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
> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
# S3 Z6 E; Q( B# A> much less connect with the ball.
* o5 E6 J- @: @  ^> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
& m& o+ |6 w$ \8 S% l/ M> other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
( \+ n! Z" p( K" ?: _& [' p> 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
% {% Z. S6 j  m0 q+ c. |7 P& |+ W> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
* u! N3 S6 i0 ]+ V5 D> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
8 D  ?+ p# m4 d" n& |' K) p> right back to the pitcher.
>
# Q! X0 d. Y9 S/ r> 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
* O! ?/ \# g. }" E> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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0 w, v  @" Y( Z, \" s& K> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
7 u1 \& L1 @5 i* v> of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started
, u/ S$ h: x5 ]  O> yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever
1 k: p% F  q; j; t" @6 X. B> run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline,
; f& h2 L* A  ?- a) I> wide-eyed and startled.
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> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
! I3 @+ d+ a+ t/ o0 v> awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the
2 q5 f. T, R! |5 t> base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had
" H8 }* J1 M2 ?( c0 x> 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
/ R( q% ^6 f( Z; Q% O- [% x: y> 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
4 O6 |- a4 x$ F8 ^7 `6 h> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
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$ \4 N6 ~) {6 `2 \) x4 G+ p  U$ T> 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!
( p* D8 n  _* e& v+ d> Shay, run to third!'
>
' ~% \5 k/ R. w7 ~> 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
> game for his team.
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> 'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face,
5 j$ Q. c- a# t; |& A8 Z7 N> 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity
> into this world'.
>
  R  N4 _4 e5 j4 P5 V0 E7 t" j! j> Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never
- m4 N. @9 \# @> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
" r# Q; c1 b5 k# S; Q$ r> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
>
& Y$ W4 R+ I  K% l2 `' b> 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
> 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
1 J4 ~" R, _& V0 [> 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who
% S- _2 z: l" a+ Z! `> 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
> 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?
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> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
>
! }0 d/ t3 h+ c% O  [  g> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
9 ^% Z$ ^, v; @" t! d> 2. Forward
>
/ [5 L( w5 Y- R" s' X( ?1 E* [> May your day, be a Shay Day.