July Brings Holiday, Heat and Watermelons!
Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
GRAPELAND – People from other areas might not get our enthusiasm for all things July. Yes, it’s starting to really, really get hot, and yes, we are already starting to miss that rain. Sure, the kids are out of school and the whole area is bathed again in a million shades of green. But that first glimpse you get each season of one of those Pennington watermelon stands just screams, “Summer in Houston County.”
As the sheds open and the trailer takes home on Crockett’s South Fourth Street, it was time for us to take our yearly pilgrimage to downtown Grapeland to meet one of the local students selling all those tasty, sweet watermelons. Our chats are always unique, the answers often cautious — you wouldn’t want to give bad advice on how to choose the sweetest melon! But the experience itself, like those very watermelons, seems new and exciting each season, even after so many years.
This year we found Audrianna Walker manning the main sales-point on Grapeland’s North Market Street. Framed by a trailer-load of bright watermelons, Walker sat with her sunshades, and — we double-checked to make sure — plenty of fluids. You’ll find the Grapeland High School student making some extra summer money daily from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. and you might be able to fry an egg under that awning some days, although she seemed unfazed by it.
Walker will be going into her junior year of high school next year, a little anxious, as it is rightly considered the toughest year of school. Of course, one’s junior year in high school means things are starting to get real, as adulthood looms on the horizon.
“Just starting to grow up a little bit,” Walker admitted.
She has been involved heavily in sports and other activities, as a cheerleader and multi-sport athlete, participating in volleyball, basketball and previously softball. She plans to continue most of these activities, but keeps her grades up and spoke with us as she happily served customers and tried to answer their many questions.
Walker has enjoyed her first run selling one of Grapeland’s most popular exports, saying she tries her best to help customers find the best watermelon. Of course, there are as many theories on how to pick the best one, probably as many theories as there are varieties.
“A lot of people come by and ask me questions…I try,” she laughed, saying the seedless ones are her personal favorites.
She wisely avoids trying to advise the experts, who come with a lifetime of instinct on exactly which melon they want. Prodding, thumping, inspecting — Walker knows better than to come between them and their expertise.
“They just tell me which ones they want and I just come out and sell them,” she added.
Walker’s still working on plans for her future, saying she really enjoyed the health science classes at the school. Her plans right now include going to cosmetology school and doing hair and makeup.
They say the slightest change in temperature, rain, or humidity can change the whole feel and flavor of a watermelon. Much like high school students, small changes in their lives will affect their outcome, too. If her broad smile and friendly attitude with customers is any indication, however, it seems this young lady will be a success at just about anything she puts her heart into.
So, as we trek down to fulfill part of the yearly ritual of living in and around Houston County, it’s time to cut up a watermelon, spit some seeds, and have that goodness run all the down to our elbows. Be sure to take a minute to thank young Miss Walker and the others like her, as they earn some money this summer out in the heat, enjoying a tradition far older than they are.
Expert or first-timer, there’s just something special about opening that first Pennington watermelon each year.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
