From the Pig Pen: Down Memory Ln

Spring is in the air as I pen this month’s column for The Buzz. My wife and I experienced a wonderful and memorable Easter. I sincerely hope that each of you good citizens of Wayne County had a similar experience. Farmers are busy planting crops, local strawberries are ripe, and dogwood trees are in full bloom. Yes, May is almost here and as usual I am trying to decide what to write about. I have chosen to share what May meant to me as lad growing up in rural Nahunta.

First, and foremost, the onset of May signaled that the end of the school year was in plain sight. What did that mean? You must be kidding? It meant no more homework, no more book reports, and no more report cards. But, life on the farm in the summer was not exactly a picnic. It was like jumping out of the fire and landing in the briar patch. Perhaps, it would be more appropriate, to say that we kids landed in the tobacco patch.

What else did those early spring breezes and warm May showers mean to a naive little country boy? It could only signal one thing. And what, pray tell, am I referring to? Give me a break! Anybody, back in the day, knew that the baseball season was officially underway. There were other things that had to be fitted into a busy schedule, but baseball ruled supreme on Nahunta Farm Road. I ate, slept, drank, and breathed baseball. Life seemed so simple at the time. Where, I might ask, has the innocence of youth gone?

I, also, am tied to a tradition which falls on the first Saturday in May each year. I eagerly wait as the best three year olds steeds in the world make that annual “run for the roses” at Church Hill Downs. It has been described as the two most exciting minutes in sports, and rightfully so. The conclusion of The Kentucky Derby lends itself to conversation as to the possibility of a triple-crown winner in horse racing each year. These magnificent animals and the pageantry of this race are a part of the American landscape.

Perhaps not at the time, but I now realize Mother’s Day is the most prominent event to occur each May. Being a mother and being assigned the opportunity to raise a child is the highest calling and most noble and time honored occupation on earth. I wish to each of you ladies a very special day. To you children, honor your mothers while you have the chance. As always, until we next meet, be of good cheer.