Elvira’s Pink Rollers And Other Fall Activity

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It was Jessie Gurner who perfectly captured the pink rollers and gave Elvira her personality with a post on the Chamber’s Facebook page. As Jessie shared details about Elvira’s trip north, she turned the giant watermelon into a lady getting dolled up for a big weekend complete with the pink hair rollers. Rogers had tucked pool noodles — bright pink — under Elvira to protect her from the ratchet straps in his pickup bed, but after Jessie’s remark, you couldn’t help but see her as a melon headed to Kentucky in curlers, all dressed up for her grand appearance. All she needed was a little lipstick.

I’m grateful for Allen, Hal Vaughn, Tom Hill, and all the watermelon growers who keep this tradition alive. They invest countless hours and represent Water Valley well, not only by hauling melons that can hang with the biggest in the country, but by carrying a piece of our small town with them wherever they go. Their hard work in the patch, their friendly rivalries, and even the heartbreaks along the way are part of what makes this place special. And win or lose, they remind us that Water Valley still retains its title as the Watermelon Metropolis of the World.

While Elvira got her moment in the spotlight, back home my attention has been turning to the woods. Fall usually means food plots and bushhogging as deer season approaches. Normally by this time of year I would have foodplots ready to plant. But the heat has lingered, the ground has stayed dry, and honestly, life has been busy enough that I don’t mind waiting a little longer.

My only hope is that the coyotes leave a few deer for the rest of us. My game camera tells the story. In one day it snapped two pictures of coyotes carrying fawns in their mouths. That camera sits on a natural crossing where everything comes through — deer, turkey, raccoons, and, apparently, plenty of coyotes. They must be hard at it this year, because in all my years of running trail cameras I have never captured a picture of a coyote with a fawn — and now I’ve got two in one day.

Part of the reason I’m behind on food plots is that Saturdays have been taken up with team-building meetings for Kairos Prison Ministry. At the end of October, a team of about 40 of us will head inside Parchman for four days of ministry. It’s been nearly two years since I’ve written about Kairos, but it remains one of the most meaningful ministries I have ever experienced.

Preparing for a Kairos weekend takes months of prayer and planning. The Saturday meetings are more than just logistics. They’re a chance to train, encourage one another, and bond as a team. And when we go in, we don’t go in alone.

Behind those prison walls is already a strong church body — men have planted seeds of faith long before we arrive. This Kairos weekend will take place in Unit 29, a maximum-security unit and one of the darkest places in the state. Yet even there, brothers in Christ are working daily to share the love of Jesus.

I know some people are skeptical of “jailhouse conversions,” but I’ve seen too much to doubt. Following Christ inside prison is no easy walk. When a man professes faith at Parchman, the other inmates watch him closely. If he stumbles, he’s called out as a hypocrite. Out here, if I slip, maybe only my wife notices. In prison hundreds of eyes are always on you. Temptation is never far away. The ones who truly follow Christ live their faith under constant scrutiny, and that kind of commitment humbles those of us who come in from the outside.

This team includes several men from right here in Water Valley — Cody Schmitz, Ethan McDuff, Jeremy Sartain and Carey Sartain. Please keep them, and the whole Kairos team, in your prayers.