All things considered, it’s merely a blip on the radar screen of what to be thankful for. Nevertheless, I was very grateful for someone’s thoughtful act of kindness.
It reunited me with a cherished keepsake.
Here’s how it played out.
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“Have you seen my _________ ?” I’ve posed this query to my wife on many occasions. You can fill in the blank with any number of items - keys, phone, wallet, etc. I seem to use that exasperating question more and more these days. Her go-to response: “when was the last time you had it?”, it being any of the aforementioned possessions or others currently MIA. This time it was a very old, well worn genuine leather Phil Rizzuto* autograph baseball glove which has been with me for over 60 years. It’s seen action starting with after school pickup games at the Parade Grounds Park in Brooklyn, summer vacations at a New Jersey bungalow colony, fraternity intramurals, and my Little League play for Blossom Heath Florists in Oceanside, NY.
These days I love slipping it on to ‘have a catch’ with two of my grandsons who are Big Time into baseball.
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| Matan |
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| Isaac |
But where is that prized mitt now? Taking my wife’s cue, I remember last using it for a catch at Waltham’s Lazazzero’s Park when my two nearby grandkids had a Veteran’s Day sleepover two weeks prior. OK, I now know when I last had possession, but after almost turning my house upside down and shaking it, alas, no glove fell to the floor. I was at a loss, and quite upset. You might say, it’s only a glove, get over it, get another. Yeah, but this one with all its imperfections and battle scars, had special memories attached. It hurt to lose it.
At any rate, on Thanksgiving Day, filled with thoughts of all I was thankful for, my wife and I headed out for dinner at my daughter’s home. Our son and his family were already gathered. Suddenly I had a hunch for solving the mystery of the lost glove - is it possible the glove was inadvertently left at Lazazzero’s? It was a highly unlikely long shot, but still worth taking a small detour before our gathering.
Moments later after checking out the field and stands where the glove might be and even scouring the adjacent basketball court where I played a few games of 5-3-1 with my granddaughter, I walked back to the car empty handed and dejected. Nothing.
Suddenly, I noticed it perched on a nearby fence post! Some good soul believing the owner would come back, cared enough to rescue it. As expected, the glove was in rough shape - dirty, weather-beaten, and suffering nasty lacerations and missing parts probably the result of being used as a chew toy by some neighborhood mutt. It was in need of surgery and the ICU - but I had it back!
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| The webbing was detached, the leather dry & stiff from exposure to a soaking rain, and the strap was chewed/ripped off |
Once home I quickly assembled my instruments and supplies - a leather remnant, rawhide, surgical scissors, upholstery needles, conditioner, and ‘leather scalpel’. Surgery was scheduled for the morning.
When all was set and painstakingly done, the glove emerged anew to resume its encore as Papa's prized mitt.
Looking back, I'm reminded of a friend's expression of thankfulness at this holiday time. Most important among her riches was having her husband back home. He had just been released from the hospital after days of intensive care when doctors worked to save his life from the ravages of a life-threatening systemic infection. He left severely weakened and battered, a shell of who he had been, but his wife was so happy to have him back, in any shape.
With family gathered around marking Thanksgiving 2022, I was truly thankful for all I had. In a small but appreciative way I was also grateful for what a thoughtful, caring soul did to help me get a cherished keepsake back home, regardless of the shape it was in.
I also couldn't wait to have the next catch.
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* Phil Rizzuto, 'The Scooter', spent his entire baseball career playing shortstop for the New York Yankees (1941 - 1956). During that span the team captured ten American League titles and seven World Championships. Many of those victories were against my Brooklyn Dodgers, which makes me wonder why my dad brought a Yankee shortstop autograph glove home for me. After his playing career, Rizzuto had a forty year career as a radio and TV sports announcer for the Yankees. He was known for his idiosyncratic, conversational broadcast style, and for his trademark expression, 'Holy Cow!'
images - David Greenfield
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