Story by Paul Gurwitz
A typical Sunday morning pickup softball game on July 4 by a group of men in West Hempstead became more about acts of kindness than a win or a loss.
The men set up the field at the Cornwell School because the Saturday storms made the Chestnut fields unplayable. Credit goes to the people who take care of the fields at Cornwell to allow it to drain so quickly as opposed to Chestnut fields, which look like ponds after every rainfall. Some of the biggest problems with the fields at Cornwell are the big tree that overhangs the first baseline, the short distance between the left field line and the fence that protects Hempstead Avenue.
While nothing special happened in the game there was one special moment that shows how people are willing to inconvenience themselves to help strangers. A foul ball cleared the fence at Cornwell and bounced down Hempstead Avenue, narrowly missing two cars. Again, nothing that unusual. What made this moment special was a when a car heading south stopped, made a U-turn and pulled off on the northbound side. A young passenger emerged from the car, grabbed the ball, and came across and threw the ball back over to allow the game to resume. The driver made another U-turn, thankfully not hitting his helpful passenger, picked up the young man and drove off.
Although it wasn’t a play-by-play of who won and who lost, it was a demonstration of an adult teaching the Golden Rule, most commonly explained as the principle of treating others as one wants to be treated. It is unknown if the driver and young helper were West Hempstead residents, but it happened here and the players appreciated the courtesy.
