the story that brought some tears into my eyes...even just for a few seconds
You make the choice Don't look for a punch line. There isn't one.
Read it anyway.
My question to all of you is: Would you have made the 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 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. The father continued.
"I believe, that when a child like Shay comes into the world, an
opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it
comes, in the way other people treat that child."
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 team, but the father also understood that if
his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed
sense of belonging. Shay's father approached one of the boys on
the field and asked if Shay could play.
The boy looked around for guidance and, getting none, he took
matters into his own hands 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."
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs
but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay
put on a glove and played in the outfield.
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 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, 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 'cause Shay didn't even know
how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.
However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved in a
few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able
to make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily
and missed. The 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.
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.
Instead, the pitcher took the ball and turned and threw the ball
on a high arc to right field, far beyond the reach of the first baseman.
Everyone started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in
his life had Shay ever made it to first base. He scampered down the
baseline, wide-eyed and startled.
Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second!" By the time Shay
rounded first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have
thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood
the pitcher's intentions and intentionally threw the ball high and far
over the third-baseman's head.
Shay ran toward second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously
circled the bases toward home. Shay reached second base, the
opposing shortstop ran to him, turned him in the direction of third base,
and shouted, "Run to third!" As Shay rounded third, the boys from
both teams were screaming, "Shay, 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.
"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."
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 think twice about sharing.
The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through
cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often
suppressed in our schools and workplaces.
If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that
you're probably sorting out the people on your address list that
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 present
us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity
or do we pass up that opportunity, and leave the world a little bit colder in
the process? You now have the choice.