Out On The Mudline
Library Should Be Integral Part Of Community
By W. P. Sissell
The Week
Every year, usually the first week in November we, the Friends of the Library of Batesville, have a book sale. Almost all of the books come from donations from people in the surrounding area.
We have become noted (because of the help from newspapers and radio stations in most of the large surrounding area. As an example, last year Nannette and I picked up our automobile trunk loaded with books from Water Valley. This year we had people from Senatobia, Marks, Clarksdale and even Miss Betty and her sister, Jimmie, showed up. Betty walked in to find a long time college friend, Valerie McMinn Campbell, working at the sale. Campbell is the secretary of our Friends organization.
Betty was able to replace some of a rain damaged set which she owns. Jimmie took many of the same set, telling me that her husband, Bill Cole, (the man I ferried school busses for several years ago), would read every one of those volumes.
The date of our sale usually conflicts with the election process. That was the case this year in the northern court district of Panola County. As usual our Batesville city officials helped us get the thousands of books moved from the library storage room to the Extension Building. At the close our good friends’ Roy and Mary Robinson, picked up the unsold volumes for the shelves of their “Mary’s Go Round.”
We usually have a number of volumes remaining. Roy had purchased a number of books on two earlier visits to the sale. After Katrina devastated the southern part of our state several years ago, Dr. Schaeffer, our Superintendent of Schools, took the left over books along with the funds from the sales to the person in charge of getting school libraries going again.
We, of the Friends, know that the library should be an integral part of all the homes in our communities. We enjoy the support of the people of the community. One of my friends, hearing about the book sale, handed me a sizeable check as he told me to bring him several books – and described the kind of book he liked.
Otherwise
My son is busy with his mail route; his son is attending Northwest; one grandson is working for his dad; another is working for MDOT; we all stay busy. Perhaps some of you have noticed several head of cattle in the small pasture in front of our house. One of our young friends has been calling me “the Cattle Baron” in relation to those five head of cattle. I bought those five to keep that front lot mowed—after getting it fenced with net wire. Since that fencing job there have been several autos come in contact with it. It is almost a regular job for William to patch the front fence. He’s become such an expert that I must look very closely—walking—to find the patch.
Nannette and I have just returned from Batesville where we picked up cross ties for brace posts. I ran into Wayne Williamson many years ago at Trusty’s Hardware. In our conversation Wayne told me that he was now relegated to the “Step-and-fetch-it” role. I think that Nannette and I have reached that role.
Because of the market fluctuations I made nothing on the sale of those five calves—joining a number of others—but like the old farmer says—“There’ll be others” and they did eat a lot of grass. I really enjoyed getting to know those calves and taming them to the point—with the exception of one wild critter—where I could scratch their head and spray the flies without spooking them with the spray.
Barbara, my computer expert, came by, after I purchased a new printer, (but before I hooked it up) and found a loose plug. When it was installed properly the printer began to function—BUT NOW—it printed in a foreign language which we could not interpret. We do have most of that fallacy figured out ????? by avoiding it and within a few minutes I hope that I will be able to transmit this to the Herald.
Please don’t forget our veterans—hug one today!
Our wish for you is a great week—I’ve forgotten to add that John Wesley came to see us at church—but that’s really a whole separate story—All you Methodists will remember who John Wesley was—I hope. You can almost all the time reach me at 23541 Highway 6/278, Batesville, MS 38606 or 662-563-9879.
