Sandy Springs: Make sure 2 historic gems stay right here

By Jim Osterman

I had a teacher who constantly reminded us not to be caught out in the backyard looking for four-leaf clovers when opportunity came knocking.

Well, my fellow Sandy Springsteens, that sound you hear is opportunity giving our door the five-knuckle shuffle.

As you may have read, the 600-photograph, 800-word “Anne Frank in the World” exhibit will come to town in December, perhaps finding a permanent home.

I can’t be the only one who sees this as a consequential occasion for us to speak through our actions about the kind of community we want to be by giving this essential piece of history a permanent home.

When the exhibit arrives later this year it will be the third relocation in six years. Substantive history should not be treated like a vagabond rock act, scuttling from place to place.

Separately, I had the chance to spend some time on the grounds of one of the oldest homes in the city a few weeks back, hosted by The Friends of Lost Corner.

For the moment they ask we not discuss the location, but this will not be the case for long.

The construction on the home began in 1916, which would account for the multiple stone fireplaces, the root cellar and the water well, among other features.

The house sits on a piece of land in excess of 15 acres. Look through some ground clutter and one can see where there was once a garden fishpond.

Two massive oaks anchor the property in place. A variety of plants abound and, no doubt, it is a small piece of heaven to critters.

According to Trisha Fox, a Lost Corner friend, the estate was left by “a very gracious lady” who wanted to make sure the property would be preserved and, in some fashion, made useful to the community.

There is not yet a specific plan for Lost Corner, but the hope is that community members — working with the city — will bring their skills to bear as volunteers to preserve and restore the home, protect and bring the gardens back to life — in short create an oasis of history.

So with regard to the Anne Frank exhibit and Lost Corner, let us think backward on these projects.

We make the decision that they will come to pass, then work astern to make them reality.

Opportunity does not indulge patience. It isn’t like that “Millionaire” show — it doesn’t ask “is that your final answer.”

If no answer is forthcoming, well, this world is full of other doors to thump.

Jim Osterman has lived in Sandy Springs since 1962.