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Shay's
Story
At
a fund-raising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled
children,
the father of one of the school's 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.
"Everything
God 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 God's plan reflected in my son?" The audience was stilled by the
query.
The
father continued. "I believe," the father answered, "that when God brings
a child like Shay into the world, an opportunity to realize the Divine
Plan presents itself. And it comes in the way 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 will let me play?" Shay's
father knew that most boys would not want him on their team. But the father
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
from his teammates. Getting none, he took matters into his own hands and
said, "We are losing by six runs, and the game is in the eighth inning.
I guess he can be on our team and I'll try to put him up 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. At the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove
and played in the outfield. Although no hits came his way, he was obviously
ecstatic just to be 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 bases loaded, the potential winning
run was on base. Shay was scheduled to be the next at-bat. Would the team
actually let Shay bat at this juncture 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, much less connect with the ball.
However,
as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved 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 toward Shay. As the pitch came
in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball to the pitcher. The
pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could easily have thrown the ball
to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have ended
the game.
Instead,
the pitcher took the ball and threw it on a high arc to right field, far
beyond 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 was rounding
first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball
to the second baseman for a tag. But the right fielder understood
what the pitcher's intentions had been, so he threw the ball high and far
over the third baseman's head.
Shay
ran towards second base as the runners ahead of him deliriously circled
the bases towards home. As 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 home, stepped on home plate and was cheered as the
hero, for hitting a "grand slam" and winning 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 the Divine Plan into this
world."
zzzzz
Footnote:
The person who wrote this story believes that you can make a difference
as well.
I thank
God that he guided me into a profession that I love, and that gives me
the opportunity to feel like I make a difference in the lives of children.
The rewards that I get from my students and their parents makes up for
the low pay. I'd rather go to a low paying job that I love, than
to a high paying job that I hated.
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