Letters

I drove to the nearby Walgreen’s in Westhampton Beach for my second Moderna shot. I hoped it would be a smooth in and out like my first vaccine was just four Thursdays ago in their Shirley store.

A kind friend had helped me set up the appointments, and I agreed to anything — including the second one that was booked for a Duane Reed store in the city! Yikes. I took a chance to make a switch to the closest Walgreens and went in person to make my plea.

It was a day after my first shot and I was the sole person in the store. I showed my card, explained the dilemma of distance and waited. The pharmacist, Barbara, checked her calendar and quickly said: “Okay, I have March 11. Come early, no problem.”

Today was the day. As an appreciation gift, I selected a bunch of notecards I had made. I stood in line waiting and wishing I’d brought my Times with me.

In the chair closest to me sat a man wearing a New York Yankees baseball jacket covered with patches of championship years. I piped up to him: “Were you there at all those games?”

“No,” he confessed and added that the jacket was a birthday present from his son.

Then I zipped into teacher-mode: “So … here’s a question of Yankee trivia: What happened on October 1, 1961?”

“Roger Maris hit his 61st home run!”

“Bingo! You’re good! I was there — and almost caught that ball that Sal Durante snatched on the fly in the right field seats.”

“I was there, too,” he said. “I was 10 years old.”

“And I was 13. I’m older. And I still have my ticket stub.”

People around us were watching and I spotted some smiles.

I looked up and a smiling man approached the counter. He pulled an orange Veuve Clicquot box of champagne out of a shopping bag and handed it through the opening to Gabriella, the technician. “For you — thank you so much.” And then he reached back in and brought out two more bottles for the other two women.

With that, I reached into my bag and brought out the pack of photo cards with a ribbon and handed it to Gabriella: “And here is my gift of appreciation, too. My photos are on the cards.”

Before I sat back down, I asked about the man who gave the bubbly. Barbara said, “He’s from Sag Harbor and drove all the way here.”

My response: “And I know why. You make us all feel cared for.”

Everyone who witnessed the exchange felt happy and hopeful about things looking up.

Irene Tully

Hampton Bays