Part Two - Latsha

Note: some of this material is new, as of today, and some is out of chronological order. But it’s too good to leave out. After all, this ain’t no book!

Greg once left a very rare, large and strange looking beetle on my front porch, along with a note:  “Mr. Gillum, I found this Rhino Beetle I thought you would want to see. It looked a little better before my brother stepped on it.”

     Greg’s mother once bought a new mop she was very proud of. Greg was headed out on a snake catching trip, so he cut the handle out to make a snake catching stick. He caught a bucket of snakes – Moccasins, rattlers, black snakes. When he got home, he spread them all out on the basement floor for display. His dad got him good because of the house full of snakes, while Mom got him even better because of her ruined new mop.

     One of our Wildlife Club field trips was to Degray lake. We were all asleep at daylight the next morning, except for Latsha. He excitedly woke us all up, telling us all he had located a school of white bass, right up at the edge of the water. We sleepily caught 115 large white bass.

     On another field trip, I set up a Woodsman contest, involving tree climbing, wood splitting, wood chopping. Guess who won all events.

     Greg has a spectacular collection of Indian relics. He walked about every creek bottom around Arkadelphia to find them. I called Greg yesterday on my cell phone. Guess what – Greg had discovered a new spot to hunt indian relics, and he and his sweet loving wife were on their way to search it out. The years have not changed Latsha. Or, his loyal wife.

     Greg figures he has fished about every pond within sight of a road around Arkadelphia. His largest black bass caught is 8 lbs. 4 ounces.    

The doc was right. Late in high school, Latsha was 5’ 10” and weighed 150 pounds. In the next two years, he grew six inches and gained 60 pounds – no fat.

     Greg joined the baseball team at Henderson State University. At 17, he was hitting the baseball over the scoreboard at HSU. Soon, he set a school record by hitting a home run 600 feet. Many people began to take notice. The tennis courts are beyond the baseball field at Henderson. When Greg came up to bat, the tennis team just stopped practicing, and just watched. In awe. And also, in case the ball lands in the tennis court. But if it was a good hit, it went over the courts, the path, the creek, and into the woods.

     The pro baseball scouts soon heard of Greg. They began to show up at his games. They interviewed him. But that was not to be Greg’s path.

     In 1992, he played his last baseball game at HSU. A scout from a super major softball team followed him to his car, and offered him the opportunity to play at the highest level of softball in the country.

     Greg said, “Well, my buddies and I already have a softball team.”

     “Well, just let me tell you what we can give you. We’ll send you a plane ticket each week, and fly you all over the country and Canada. This will give you an opportunity to play at softball’s highest level.” Then he went on to tell Greg what all  they could give him. The list was impressive. He would be back to Arkansas, and the woods he loved, each Monday. So, Greg agreed to sign up to play in the super majors. This year, he was inducted into the State Super Majors Softball Hall of Fame. All indications are he will be inducted at the national level in a few years. They don’t induct young guys, let them get a little age on them.

     By 1999, softball was no longer fun. Four days later, he was in Destin, Florida, signing on as the mate on a deep sea fishing boat, helping 40 clients catch a lot of fish. The afternoon was spent, with one helper, cleaning the catch of forty fishermen. Later, he signed onto a boat that goes after the largest fish. There he caught 600 pound blue marlins and sharks. He often hooked the monsters, then handed it off to a client to bring it in. The client takes home a trophy, Greg took home a very nice tip. He often made three hundred trips each year. He fished for 14 years, two trips per day.

     Latsha is a top notch duck hunting guide. He stays booked solid each season, and can perfectly imitate every sound a duck makes. He has a wide range of calls, and demonstrated them for me – feeding, greeting, come back, hail, chuckles, and more. He can even play a song on a duck call. He has guided for 25 years.

     Latsha has hunted a wide range of animals for many years. Now, he figures he has about shot his share, and just goes hunting to watch the animals, mostly.

     Greg worked for the Arkansas Game and Fish videoing wildlife for a year. Then, it was no longer fun.

     Though many around Greg have tried to change the path of his life, they are unsuccessful.  He sticks to his own chosen path, doing what he loves, no matter what. Now who can ask for more than that in this one lifetime that we all are given?

     Latsha’s favorite bible verse is Matthew 7: 13-14. Narrow is the gate that leads to life. Few find it. Greg has found the gate that leads to the life he wishes to lead; he sticks on that narrow path. No matter what.

     His goal for each and every day is to make someone smile. And he reaches that goal, many times each day.

     And, I still just love Greg Latsha.