Stories From the Past with Marshall Trimble

MEMORIES OF THE TOWN I LOVE SO WELL

By Marshall Trimble

This article is part of our ongoing series, Stories From the Past with Marshall Trimble, where we share firsthand accounts and historical reflections that help preserve Ash Fork and Arizona’s rich history. We’re grateful to Marshall Trimble — Arizona historian and Ash Fork native — for continuing to share these invaluable stories with us.

MEMORIES OF THE TOWN I LOVE SO WELL

Anyone who grew up in a small town and leaves it someday, takes along unforgettable milestones that come with growing up.

Among these memories are when I was eight and bought my first bicycle. There was a sense of freedom that came being able to travel from one side of town to the other in just a few minutes.

Another was my first home run. Like Joe DiMaggio, I tried to look stoic, but my father commented later that when I crossed home plate, I was grinning like a mule chewing on a prickly pear cactus. He had a way with words.

I got my first bloody nose during a brief scuffle during a baseball game when I forgot to duck. Even though I thought I won, my face was bloody and the other guy’s wasn’t. So I lost.

During a basketball game, I collided with a player from Seligman. As I was leaving the gym on my way to the hospital in Williams, Coach Jess Bettina grinned and raised his hand. He wasn’t giving me a high-five but was estimating the number of stitches I would need. He was right. I came home a few hours later with five stitches in my left eyelid.

My most important milestone. A boy never forgets the first time he kisses a girl. I realized there was a whole new world out there waiting to be explored.

When I was sixteen, I bought my first car, a 1946 Ford convertible. One day after school a group of classmates piled in, and we drove to Williams. On the way back we raced full throttle down Ash Fork hill. If a tire had blown, I would have wiped out most of the junior class at Ash Fork High School.