Re: How well do you play the game?

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: : Someone sent this to me in an email. I wanted to share it with all my friends. Remember it is not always about whether you win or lose but how well you play the game. : : 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, the father 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 we'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 the 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 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 toward Shay. As the ball 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 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 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." : "wow" brought a tear to my eyes too this story,as they say god works in mistearous ways.

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