{"id":1419,"date":"2009-04-01T15:25:31","date_gmt":"2009-04-01T07:25:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/?p=1419"},"modified":"2009-04-01T15:25:31","modified_gmt":"2009-04-01T07:25:31","slug":"words-of-inspiration-making-a-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-making-a-difference.html","title":{"rendered":"Making a Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>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: <\/p>\n<p>\n&#8220;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?&#8221; <\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<hr>\n<p><center><script type=\"text\/javascript\"><!--\ngoogle_ad_client = \"pub-5685769204706262\";\ngoogle_alternate_color = \"eeeecc\";\ngoogle_ad_width = 468;\ngoogle_ad_height = 60;\ngoogle_ad_format = \"468x60_as\";\ngoogle_ad_type = \"text\";\n\/\/2007-08-06: JanLeow.com Blogs (Content)\ngoogle_ad_channel = \"5832813811\";\ngoogle_color_border = \"FFFFFF\";\ngoogle_color_bg = \"FFFFFF\";\ngoogle_color_link = \"003399\";\ngoogle_color_text = \"000000\";\ngoogle_color_url = \"808080\";\ngoogle_ui_features = \"rc:0\";\n\/\/--><\/script><script type=\"text\/javascript\"\n  src=\"http:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/show_ads.js\">\n<\/script><\/center><br clear=\"all\"><\/p>\n<hr \/>\n<div style=\"float: right; border: solid grey 1px; width: 150px; font-size: 8.5px; padding: 2px; margin: 5px 0 5px 10px\">I don&#8217;t know who wrote these words of inspiration, inspiration quotes and stories. It just plonked into my inbox. It&#8217;s probably public domain, so I just share it here rather than endlessly forwarding it. Enjoy!<\/div>\n<p>The audience was stilled by the query. The father continued. &#8220;I believe, that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes, in the way other people treat that child.&#8221; Then he told the following story: <\/p>\n<p>\nShay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, &#8220;Do you think they&#8217;ll let me play?&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>\nShay&#8217;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 and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps. <\/p>\n<p>\nShay&#8217;s father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play, not expecting much. The boy looked around for guidance and said, &#8220;We&#8217;re losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we&#8217;ll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>\nShay struggled over to the team&#8217;s bench put on a team shirt with a broad smile and his Father had a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. <\/p>\n<p>\nThe boys saw the father&#8217;s joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay&#8217;s team scored a few runs but it was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. <\/p>\n<p>\nEven 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&#8217;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, 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 but impossible &#8217;cause Shay didn&#8217;t even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. <\/p>\n<p>\nHowever, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing the other team putting winning aside for this moment in Shay&#8217;s life, 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. <\/p>\n<p>\nThe game would now be over, but 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 threw the ball right over the head of the first baseman, out of reach of all team mates. <\/p>\n<p>\nEveryone from the stands and both teams started yelling, &#8220;Shay, run to first! Run to first!&#8221; Never in his life had Shay ever ran that far but made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. <\/p>\n<p>\nEveryone yelled, &#8220;Run to second, run to second!&#8221; Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to second base. <\/p>\n<p>\nBy the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball, the smallest guy on their team, who had a chance to be the hero for his team for the first time. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher&#8217;s intentions and he too intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman&#8217;s head. <\/p>\n<p>\nShay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home. All were screaming, &#8220;Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay&#8221; <\/p>\n<p>\nShay reached third base, the opposing shortstop ran to help him and turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, &#8220;Run to third! Shay, run to third&#8221; As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams and those watching were on their feet were screaming, &#8220;Shay, run home! Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the &#8220;grand slam&#8221; and won the game for his team. <\/p>\n<p>\nThat 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. <\/p>\n<p>\nShay didn&#8217;t make it to another summer and died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his Father so happy and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day! <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>Return to:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"words-of-inspiration-quotes\">Words of Inspiration Table of Contents<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>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: &#8220;When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-making-a-difference.html\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Making a Difference<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[11],"tags":[48,166],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1bS5F-mT","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1417,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-hospital-window.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":0},"title":"Hospital Window","author":"Jan","date":"1 April 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"A great note for all to read it will take just 37 seconds to read this and change your thinking Two men, both seriously ill, occupied the same hospital room. One man was allowed to sit up in his bed for an hour each afternoon to help drain the fluid\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2992,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/the-daffodil-principle-an-inspiration-to-get-things-going.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":1},"title":"The Daffodil Principle &#8211; an Inspiration to get things going","author":"Jan","date":"27 April 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"The Daffodil Principle is an interesting inspirational story by Jaroldeen Asplund Edwards. Received this in my inbox sometime around year 2007. Well we all have a tendency to procrastinate, and at other times some task seem too enormous, too daunting to tackle. But that's how things get done! Like the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1422,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-the-old-phone.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":2},"title":"The Old Phone","author":"Jan","date":"1 April 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"When I was quite young, my father had one of the first telephones in our neighborhood. I remember the polished, old case fastened to the wall. The shiny receiver hung on the side of the box. I was too little to reach the telephone, but used to listen with fascination\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1428,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-quotes-on-genius.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":3},"title":"Famous Quotable Inspirational Quotes About Genius","author":"Jan","date":"1 April 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. \u2014 Thomas Edison, US inventor of the motion-picture projector, phonograph, electric-light bulb and 1,090 other inventions. No great genius is without a mixture of madness. \u2014 Aristotle, an ancient Greek philosopher dubbed one of the greatest thinkers of all time. His work was\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1551,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/words-of-inspiration-quotes-on-confidence.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":4},"title":"Words of Inspiration Quotes on Confidence","author":"Jan","date":"24 June 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"We all need some encouragement now and then. Sometimes these little words of inspiration quotes can actually help you to spur things along. This world is such that the world does not wait for you. The world does not owe you anything. You have to make it work, put in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2900,"url":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/a-tale-of-two-seas.html","url_meta":{"origin":1419,"position":5},"title":"A Tale of Two Seas","author":"Jan","date":"22 February 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Received this interesting email about the Dead Sea and the Sea of Galilee. Don't know who wrote it since the author didn't append his\/her name. It is a good analogy of the sea in comparison with our life, after all it was said it is blessed to give than to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Inspiration Quotes&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Inspiration Quotes","link":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/category\/inspiration-quotes"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1419"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1419"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1419\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1419"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1419"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.janleow.com\/life\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1419"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}