My first job was at the age of five, bagging groceries at my Mack's Cash & Carry on West Main Street in Lexington, SC. My uncles, Arthur and Eli Mack, were the proprietors of the grocery store. Everybody down south is named Bubba or Junior, so their nicknames were Uncle Bubba Arthur and Uncle Bubba Junior (Eli).

In earlier years, my uncles were actually competitors. My grandfather, Elias S. Mack, Sr. thought that the best way to keep the competition out of Lexington was to have them each run their own grocery store.

So for years, Arthur Mack had a store on the south side of Main Street next to what used to be the old movie theater and Jimmy Brown's Western Auto. Eli Mack, Jr. ran a similar store immediately across the street near what used to be Sessions Department Store and the barbershop.

These were not the only grocery establishments. Roberts Grocery was also on Main Street across from what used to be the old Lexington State Bank. About a mile east of these establishments was Rhoten's Grocery. About a mile north on North Lake Drive at the intersection of Church Street was an IGA Grocery.

So if a chain came to town to consider opening a store, it would see all these establishments and conclude that there were too many stores here already. That was the genius of my grandfather's thinking when he had the two Uncle Bubba's compete against one another.

Then the Mack boys joined forces and opened Mack's Cash & Carry on West Main next to what used to be Rawl's Restaurant. By joining forces, they now had what amounted to the biggest little super market in all of Lexington.

The Mack's were known for their steaks and other meats. They were known for the friendliness, kindness and generosity. They actually gave credit, which no one does today.

A lot of the regular customers at Mack's Cash & Carry were teachers, state employees and other county workers, many of whom were typically paid once a month. My uncles gave what amounted to interest-free credit to hundreds of people, some of whom still owe them money.

Mack's Cash & Carry also delivered groceries. Around town, I peddled many a load of groceries to townspeople. I know… you're asking how did you know what they wanted to order? Well, that's something else that the Mack's did - Arthur would take your order over the phone, fill the bags with your groceries and then I would deliver them to your back door.

If it were too far for me to peddle the groceries, one of the Shackleford boys, who worked there from time to time, would drive them in the store's old pickup truck.

Arthur Mack ran the register and "the front," as we called it while Eli, the self-proclaimed "City Father," would run the meat department. Jack Gable, a developmentally delayed employee, did some bagging and general cleaning as well as stocking the shelves. A host of my brothers, sisters and cousins filled out the cast of characters at Mack's Cash & Carry along with a number of others, like Wyman Taylor, who also worked there over the years along with Israel Brown and others.

Working at Mack's was fashionable because you got to see all the townspeople sooner or later. People would come in just to watch Uncle Bubba Junior and Jack Gable go after each other. It's a wonder Jack never killed him for all the teasing he took from "fat boy," which was Eli Junior's nickname that Arthur bestowed on him.

Arthur would head out at 5:00 a.m. every morning to Columbia to the Farmer's Market next to Carolina Stadium to get fresh produce. Eli would open the store and greet the meat deliveries from Caughman's Meat Plant and Amick's Poultry. It was a ritual that was relived six days a week.

On Saturday nights, I would join my uncles for dinner to cap off the week. We would send three steaks over to Roy Rawl's Restaurant and they would "heat up the meat" and throw in a salad and potato for free. Such was the ritual of my youth. I miss the peace of those days.