For a change of pace

An uplifting story.

A high school student whose mom passed away on the day her son was to play in a basketball game, surprised everyone including his coach by showing up at the game in progress after watching his mom lose her five year battle with cervical cancer.

The coach left the boy's name off the roster but when the boy joined the game, the referees awarded the opposing team two free throws on a technical foul because of it. After a seven minute debate between the opposing coach and game officials, the tech stood.

By now, word of the mother's death had spread throughout the gymnasium. The coach whispered to the player about to take the free throws and the boy threw the ball a few feet, purposely missing the basket. He repeated the action a second time. The crowd rose to its feet and applauded.

The team who blew the free throws went on to lose the game, the shooter saying of his misses "It was the right thing to do." However, both teams were winners that night.