Thursday, April 2009
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Thursday, April 2009 |
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Community | Obits | Editorial & Columnists | Society | Sports | Education | Classified Ads | Calendar of Events | Features | Newsbriefs | Legals | Archives | Subscriptions | Photo Gallery |
| Fielder’s Choice No vacation, but fun week This year’s spring break was different than those in recent years. No trip to the beach. No trip to spring training or Disney World. No trip anywhere, really. It started Monday night with some additional teenagers at our house. Young people from our church welcomed a youth group from the Jackson area, and they went to a Memphis Grizzlies game together. The teenagers all know each other from Sardis Lake Christian Camp and have developed great friendships through summer camp. Following the NBA contest, several families hosted the teens from the Siwell Road congregation. We’d cleaned our house and cleaned and cleaned some more – particularly downstairs where they’d all be hanging out and hopefully sleeping. Pam had plenty of food ready – more than enough. This was a Monday night (March 16) right in the midst of newspaper production days. I stayed up a while, but finally crashed about 12:30 a.m. I awoke about 3 a.m. and could hear voices. Pam got up and shouted “Emma,” and kindly told the group, “Get some sleep.” I awoke again about 5:30 a.m. I could still hear voices from downstairs. This time I went to the top of the stairs and said, “Emma.” I heard - “Shhh! Shhh!” They were all supposed to report back to the church building about 9 a.m., but I still told them once again, “Get some sleep.” I couldn’t help but recall my teenage years and those spend-the-night visits to various houses or when I had friends over at my house. Sleeping was a last resort. Having a good time was the top priority. Thus, I figure these young people being together, through church-related activities, and missing a night of sleep is definitely OK. But I’ve also learned that once sleep is lost – it’s impossible to catch up. And I need my six or seven hours worth. The rest of the week was spent pretty much in the normal routine – until Friday. Emma and Andy were leaving for a weekend youth retreat at Sardis. Pam and I decided to drop Erin off at my family’s in Alabama and drive on over to Birmingham to see Rachel Jones of H.W. Byers play in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Basketball Game. Some of my best times as a weekly newspaper journalist in recent years have been spent following the Lady Lions, back-to-back Class 2A state champions. And I’ve become one of Rachel’s biggest fans. I like the way she plays the game – 110 percent. She leaves it all on the court. She may be soft spoken off the court but not on the court. Rachel is a true team leader. She’s the quarterback – the floor general. And she usually ends up on the floor, diving for loose balls or driving to the hoop and getting fouled. Rachel represented H.W. Byers, Marshall County and Mississippi well in Pelham, Ala. She didn’t start the game but she was the first Mississippi player off the bench, and she saw plenty of playing time. Pam and I spent a few minutes with her afterwards, and as usual she was humble and kind. The one-day trip was a nice wrap-up to spring break. |
      
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