Two Choices

sweetspot

Two Choices
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% F5 o) j$ x: I> What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line,
3 S: P" j7 S: o9 ~> there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the
  G, G7 U2 G5 D) O0 v; A> 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
> staff, he offered a question:
>
> 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is
> done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
0 k! B8 J  G; {! t4 f> children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the
> natural order of things in my son?'
>
> The audience was stilled by the query.
>
- u8 t9 e3 G2 B; G* `> The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically
7 s6 Y, z+ e- }- u! e> and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize
9 f; }; G, |2 A# B" m> true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people
> treat that child.'
>
0 \. n! m9 x& a, J# q> Then he told the following story:
>
$ [- |; `6 x0 Q1 b+ t> 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
9 l4 @# G! j# Q) p' }" ?5 Q1 D> 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.
>
8 j* T6 S% k& ?+ P> 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
3 f( T) X: @1 C> 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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> 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
8 J& S% @0 M% ?" V; p7 O> 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
# s2 u' M" S- s. u( j8 ]; }> 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
, m, e; I7 u+ a$ F( }/ P3 A1 S> 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
, j" D, A( o" _& M> 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.
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> 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
) r( `; V3 M" Y> but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
> much less connect with the ball.
& ~1 I& `% ~, z# s$ B> However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the
, i$ i# _9 F/ H8 N$ s- F> 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+ j* Z  w) y, [! m> contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The
8 V& w" i  E, [9 U3 J9 }7 y+ I$ k> pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay.
$ j; Q( J; T; k' ~$ X. x$ A) }# T> As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
> right back to the pitcher.
>
> 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
4 a0 _' ^4 X. @; x> out and that would have been the end of the game.
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, ~  N3 A8 W* u> Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out
' \: p% E# k# \! H1 h> 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,
( V! a9 `7 ]0 a2 n* R7 u> wide-eyed and startled.
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3 @7 v3 d) P  |7 h> Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay
) e8 j/ J( m, @! z+ n) S8 q* Q1 E> 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
) U& N( }! k  h$ 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
> second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intention So he,
8 B- W' L( W1 ]8 u> 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
> circled the bases toward home.
>
> All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'
>
) z/ z: m& q. g7 |7 ~: y> Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by
0 z- B) S: C! n$ ?0 L! F> turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third!
> Shay, run to third!'
>
> As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on
1 R4 _) k: `8 p% K> their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped
* x+ S, K- }" i- E( F" n> on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the
7 W1 G. p# [4 B, O$ R0 T2 u> game for his team.
>
> '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
> forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and
6 O, @+ l0 U& u2 a. ?' |. [> seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
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> 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
3 C9 p' {  f; r. O9 s> messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often
) S+ [, ]% R, S$ }: m> obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency
> is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
>
9 C1 U: H' y2 X" c> If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're
! x0 ?; @3 K+ m, j  E8 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
> thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural
> order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people
4 G* T/ W2 F- J/ f+ h> 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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! I3 O3 n  R* m; `> A wise man once said every society is judged by
> how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
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1 k5 {; C8 `6 m6 D1 @> You now have two choices:
> 1. Delete
) ]- V% Z- C8 H> 2. Forward
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> May your day, be a Shay Day.