SIT DOWN AND STAY AWHILE

Not in that chair. Those are made for impermanence. Just awhile may well be just that in a chair like that.

And it got me thinking. What encapsules a memory. What our brain has room for in our recollections. So this is what I conjure up when I hear a person's name.

Hank Aaron--he charged me a lot for an autograph baseball, yucked it up with a promoter at the table, and gave me (or sold) me a bad autograph while he paid no attention to me at all.

Lorraine Smith--my 2nd grade teacher. One day she allowed us to crawl under her desk. We all lined up and very orderly took turns crawling on our bellies under her desk. And that is all I remember about 2nd grade.

Bill Goode--my all time least favorite student. He could push my buttons and turn my crank. He knew it, too. How we survived each other even one semester I'll never know.

Ron Copenhaver--a good friend, former teacher, golf partner. We were playing in a tournament one time when he hooked a ball out of bounds. In his low key demeanor, he pleaded, "Watch out horse." The horse didn't hear him. The ball smacked him on the right side of his rump and he took off.

an elderly neighbor lady--We lived across the street from her and her husband for a few years. Neither ever waved nor spoke. One day as I was driving, she waved me over as she stood by her mailbox. She only said, "Slow down. You're driving too fast."

Fred Mitchell--waddled when he walked. Looked like the least athletic person imaginable. Could smack the golf ball and was one of the best players at the club.

Jeannie McCartney--one of the prettiest girls in our graduating class; also very nice. Rarely dated in high school because guys figured she'd reject them.

Thanks for sitting just awhile. If you don't know any of the people mentioned, then you know a little about them. Think of or write out your list. You'll be surprised what's in that storehouse of a mind.