When I lived at Herman Junction I had two experiences with watermelon patches that I will never forget. A lot of people grew watermelons and the farmer would take them out on a roadside stand or to a market somewhere and sell watermelons, canteloupes, and whatever else he might have. Of course a watermelon patch was a notorious temptation to a young feller who felt like a real, genuine outlaw and wanted to test his courage.
Booie planted a watermelon patch right beside our house and smack on the edge of the highway. I know now why he did it. Of course, he liked watermelons and his family and our family could eat a lot of them. But, it wasn't the eating that Booie liked the most. It was the fun that he and dad had chasing the watermelon thieves out of the patch. I have known that they laid out in that watermelon patch half the night just waiting for the gangsters to come to steal some and then they would rise up and start yelling and watch the mighty men flee for their lives. Booie was also known to cut a hole in a few of those watermelons and put some stuff in them to make a feller do the green apple two-step after he had eaten a bait of watermelon. I didn't have to steal mine because they were just outside the door in the field and I could eat all that I wanted.
Oh, but there was a time when the old devil got the best of me in the watermelon stealing business. Several of us were in a pickup truck and we went to Marvin Scrivners watermelon patch down on the county line road. It was after ball practice and we weren't ready to turn in for the night. We all spread out over that watermelon patch and suddenly I noticed that all of the guys but me were in that truck and they began hollerin' at me to come on too. They had spotted Ole Marvin and took off. I hadn't seen him and I was still huntin' for a good, big, ripe one. Then, I saw him and I took off running faster than Jesse Owens ever thought of running and just jumped over the side of that truck into the bed. As soon as I was in it, Marvin started shooting! I am confident that he shot straight up in the air but there was no convincing us that he wasn't shooting at us, and whoever was driving floor-boarded that truck and we flew out of there. When we got to my house they didn't even stop, they just slowed down and I jumped out. I ran in the house and dad said, "Where have you been?" I said, "Ball practice!"
Well, I had been to ball practice! With a little side trip afterwards but I saw no reason on earth to tell him about that side trip. Now, when I want a watermelon I just go buy one and usually it is too green or over ripe. So, I just eat watermelon candy or something. Yes, Sir, things are alright at Herman Junction!
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