Arlington, Tennessee

Pictured here is my maternal grandfather Aaron, the man I am named after. During his entire life, he worked with his hands, a self-taught carpenter and contractor. His life started in Crawfordsville, Arkansas, then he moved on to Earle, Arkansas, where he, his father, and his brothers grew cotton and sold their harvest at the Memphis Cotton Exchange. He drove trucks, worked at a diesel plant, and did various other jobs. Growing up in the ’90s, all I ever knew about him was that he worked for himself. He built things. I remember him rebuilding our carport and the attached shed when I was a child. Fast-forward to 2014, he is pictured here mowing his yard in Arlington, Tennessee.