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>Ahhhhh x
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>Please read this... >
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> >What would you do?
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> >You make the choice!
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> >Don't look for a punch line; There isn't one! Read it anyway.
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> >My question to all of you is: Would you have made the same choice?
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> >At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning disabled
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> >children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that
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> >would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the
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> >school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:
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> >"When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does
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> >is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other
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> >children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is
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> >the natural order of things in my son?"
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> >The audience was stilled by the query. The father continued.
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> >"I believe, that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally
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> >handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human
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> >nature presents itself, and it comes, in the way other people treat
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> >that child"
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> >Then he told the following story:
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> >Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew
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> >were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?"
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> >Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like
>Shay on their
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> >team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed
>to
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> >play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some
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> >confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
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> >Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay
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> >could play, not expecting much. The boy looked around for guidance
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> >said,
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> >"We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess
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> >he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth
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> >inning."
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> >Shay struggled over to the team's bench put on a team shirt with a
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> >broad smile and his Father had a small ear in his eye and warmth in his
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> >heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the
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> >bottom of he eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still
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> >behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove
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> >and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was
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> >obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning
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> >from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the
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> >bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team
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> >scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential
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> >winning
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> >run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat. At this
>juncture,
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> >do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?
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> >Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all
>but
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> >impossible 'cause Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly,
>much
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> >less connect with the ball.
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> >However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing the
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> >other team putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved
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> >in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able
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> >to make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and
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> >missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball
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> >softly towards Shay.
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> >As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball
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> >right back to the pitcher.
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> >The game would now be over, but the pitcher picked up the soft grounder
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> >and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would
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> >have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead,
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> >the pitcher threw
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> >the ball right over the head of the first baseman, out of reach of all
>team
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> >mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, "Shay,
>run
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> >to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had Shay ever ran that far
>but
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> >made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and
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> >startled. Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run tosecond!" Catching his
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> >breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to
>make
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> >it to second base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the
>right
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> >fielder had the ball, the smallest guy on their team, who had a chance
>to
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> >be
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> >the hero for his team for the first time. He could have thrown the ball
>to
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> >the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's
>intentions
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> >and he too intentionally threw the ball high and far over the
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> >third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the
>runners
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> >ahead of him circled the basestoward home.
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> >All were screaming, "Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay"
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> >Shay reached third base, the opposing shortstop ran to help him and
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> >turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third!
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> >Shay, run to third" As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams and
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> >those watching were on their feet were screaming, "Shay, run home! Shay
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> >ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit
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> >the "grand slam" and won the game for his team. That day, said the
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> >father softly with tears now rolling down his face, the boys from both
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> >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 and died that winter, having
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> >never forgotten being the hero and making his Father so happy and
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> >coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of
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> >the day!
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> >AND, NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of
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> >jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to
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> >sending messages about life choices, people think twice about sharing.
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> >The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace,
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> >but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our
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> >schools and workplaces.
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> >If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that
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> >you're probably sorting out the people on your address list that aren't
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> >the "appropriate" ones to receive this type of message. Well, the
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> >person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We
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> >all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize
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> >the "natural order of things." So many seemingly trivial interactions
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> >between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little
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> >spark of love and humanity or do we pass up that opportunity to lighten
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> >the day of those with us the least able, and leave the world a little
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> >bit colder in the process?
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> >A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's
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> >least fortunate amongst them.
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> >You now have two choices:
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> >1. Delete
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> >2. Forward May your day, be a Shay Day, sunny today tomorrow & always!
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I guess I'm just a big softie at heart!!!!
