Effective Communication

What? Achieve greatness in one hour? Are you serious, Azriel - is it possible?

Yes, absolutely. It is possible. Sometimes, in fact, it can be done in ten or fifteen minutes. And sometimes, even children can do it.

Granted, it depends what you mean by "greatness". For many, becoming great is more or less synonymous with becoming famous, or acquiring great wealth. But some more sensitive souls do recognize that there is a greatness that is far more enduring; a greatness that transcends mundane material concerns and earthly values.

Skeptical? Try this little story for size. It's not new; it's well known in certain quarters and has already been published on the Web and been circulated in emails. But I think it deserves wider publicity. And a friend who lived in the neighborhood at the time assured me it is 100% authentic.

The father of our hero originally made this incident public during a very emotional address at a parent's gathering at a school his son attended. It's a school for "special" children - with special needs.

This is what he told the audience. If, like me, you're not an American and ignorant of baseball terminology, don't let that disturb you! The message will still come through loud and clear.

One afternoon he happened to be walking with his son, Shay, 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 his son was not at all athletic and that most boys would not want him on their team. But Shay's father understood that if his son was chosen to play it would give him a comfortable sense of belonging.

Shay's father approached one of the boys in 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."

Shay's father was ecstatic as Shay smiled broadly. Shay was told to put on a glove and go out to play short center field. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again and now with two outs and the bases loaded with the potential winning run on base.

Shay was scheduled to be up. 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 it was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, let alone hit with it. However as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher moved a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay should at least be able to make contact.

The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. One of Shay's team-mates came up to Shay and together they held the bat and faced the pitcher waiting for the next pitch. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly toward Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay and his teammate swung at the ball and together they 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 run to first. He scampered down the baseline wide-eyed and startled. By the time he reached first base, the right fielder had the ball. He could have thrown the ball to the second baseman who would tag out Shay, who was still running. But the right fielder understood what the pitcher's intentions were, so he threw the ball high and far over the third baseman's head.

Everyone yelled, "Run to second, run to second." 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 ran behind him screaming, "Shay run home."

Shay ran home, stepped on home plate and all 18 boys lifted him on their shoulders and made him the hero, as he had just hit a "grand slam" and won the game for his team.

This is how one little boy, whose constant companions were frustration and despair, suddenly came to be feeling top of the world.

And this is how 18 other boys, in the space of a few minutes, achieved greatness. Real greatness.

Labels: interpersonal relationships

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