I love my family, and I’d do anything they needed me to do. But I’m now calculating the amount of weight I’ll need to transport back home on my commute to Tuscaloosa.

See, they love peaches. And their friends, they also love peaches. Plus, most of them know I work in Chilton County, where the peak season is just about to kick off, hot on the heels of our upcoming Peach Festival.

That only means I’ll get requests to bring home basket after basket of all sorts of peach varieties for those who are unable to make the trip.

Believe me, I’m happy to do it. To serve as that resource, the peach deliveryman so to speak, would give me a particular satisfaction.

My only hope is that my back fender is scraping and sparking as I make my way west down U.S. Highway 82. Baskets of 20-40 peaches can get heavy, especially as the better crops rear their beautiful heads at the markets and stands. The peaches will only get bigger and riper as the days pass.

Maybe I should develop a transporting system where my friends and family place their orders in an organized manner. Only so many baskets per trip, I’ll tell them, to which they’ll offer blank stares and needs for an explanation.

Fair enough. Whatever you want. I just hope we don’t clean out the county. Remember, there are some actual Chilton residents who enjoy peaches, too, and they might not take kindly to the sight of empty stands and missing baskets.

Seriously, I don’t expect to get overwhelmed with those requests, but I’ll refrain from seeming too nave. They’ll want the fruit, and pronto. What pleases me the most is helping them understand what makes the Chilton County peaches so special. It’s comforting to know their demand is almost based solely on the fact that the peaches are from this area.

Be glad your storied reputation precedes you. And don’t mind that sagging truck waddling down the highway. That’s a good sign.