Fielder’s Choice

Trips down memory lane can carry different emotions.

One day last week a friend from Aberdeen shared some information with me about an estate sale.

I’m not a regular estate sale attendee, but this particular one caught my attention. It was going to be at the former home of Don and Sallie Rowe on High Street. They lived just a block from where we once lived on Long Street, when I was editor and publisher of The Aberdeen Examiner.

But even more so, they were great friends, and Don was a co-worker of mine at the newspaper. He was the sports editor of the community newspaper and a really good one, I might add. He was often an award winner in the Mississippi Press Association Better Newspaper Contest, including the coveted Photo of the Year honor once.

He loved sports, in general, but he particularly loved Aberdeen sports. In fact, as far as Aberdeen goes, he was basically “Mr. Sports.” He kept up with record after record and statistic after statistic. A former coach, too, he was filled with knowledge when it came to the Bulldogs.

I spent many a late night with Don at the newspaper office in downtown Aberdeen. He worked another full-time job. This was his side job, but he certainly gave it full-time attention.

One of the things that attracted me to the estate sale was some of the sports-related items listed. I sent the info to my son Andy and he wanted to go, too. So Pam and I made the early-morning drive to Tupelo, ate a great breakfast at D’Cracked Egg and went to Aberdeen.

As it turned out, Andy and Brooke bought a few things ­ a baseball, baseball case and music CDs. Pam and I did not purchase anything but we relived a lot of memories due to things we saw in the house. Those included an Aberdeen Examiner mug and some old layout sheets from a special edition of the newspaper.

The Examiner, with a slogan “In the Heart of Monroe County,” no longer exists. Several years back it was merged with the other paper in the county, The Amory Advertiser, to form The Monroe Journal.

A lady working the sale told us there were some old newspapers upstairs. The stairs were blocked with sale items. She said she would get them down. I told her not to worry about it.

As I drove home that day, I thought, “I sure wish I would have looked through those old newspapers.” We also took a ride around Aberdeen, where we lived for eight years, 1991-1999. The historic house on Long Street is no longer there. It burned a few years back. We drove by the first house we lived in in Aberdeen, on Mobile Street, and went by the former office of The Aberdeen Examiner.

I was about to turn 30 years old when I took over leadership of the community newspaper there. It’s where I cut a whole lot of my journalism teeth.

And, it’s a place where Pam and I really poured ourselves into the community and the church, like the other places we’ve lived, and built many wonderful friendships.

Saturday’s road trip stirred smiles and laughs. And it almost stirred some tears.

One thing is certain. We cherish the memories.