Good Work
The temperature is rising. A man can work up a nice sweat working in the yard. That’s what I did yesterday, worked up a sweat. I hear that’s good for the heart. I paced myself, too. In the morning, I hand-mowed the tif yard, and worked in the side yard on my khaki weed removal project. Took a nice lunch break and then did some slow work in the afternoon. Weeded in the shade of the big oaks.
I took out the pansies, pulled up nutgrass, johnson grass, virginia creeper, and bindweed. Slow and steady stuff. I’ve managed to keep up this year. Now days a little bit of work pays big results. It helps that there’s little bare ground, most of my plants are mature and have burst forth in good health to bloom and keep the ground covered and cool, for the roots of the big oaks. They seem to appreciate the effort, having fully leafed out after the big freeze in February.
I’ll be back at it today. The khaki weed is still a pest, but not to the scope and scale it was four years ago when I first started attacking the problem. Back then it was hard work on my hands and knees and the ground I covered was measured in inches. I still get down, but there’s a fair amount of walking around to discover the ground that needs repair. This evening, I’ll go hear some live music in the company of friends. I’ll probably get a hug or two. I hear that’s good for the heart as well.
John W. Wilson is the author of The Long Goodbye: A Caregiver’s Tale