Wife takes cut at mowing grass
If the grass grew anymore, I could have baled it and sold it for fodder. Like most people in my neighborhood, the constant rain has made it difficult to keep up with outside chores, grass cutting being at the head of the list. We’ve had precious few dry periods recently (in most cases hours, not whole days) when we could tackle the growth.
And, as Murphy’s Law dictates, it seemed when I had time to cut, it was raining and when I didn’t have the time, someone had shut off the heavenly spigot.
I cringed every time I looked at the back yard, where the grass grows so well. Even the tiny patch in the front of our home sported thicker, higher blades, likely due to the constant watering.
There seemed to be no solution, short of buying farm animals and letting them graze it down.
However, one day, when the sun actually shone, my lovely wife called to ask what I wanted for dinner. Having no special appetite, I told her to make the choice.
What does that have to do with cutting grass?
“Well, dinner may not be much. I’ve been working outside and I just finished cutting the grass.”
Grass cutting has always been my chore. Not that I mind sharing. It’s just that my wife has enough to do around the house without having to trim the lawn. Her job is to make the place beautiful with her flowers and landscaping, which she does very well; not mow the lawn.
To prove what a good wife she is, let me tell you how she cut the grass – with a push mower. No, not a motorized push mower – an old-fashioned reel-type that gets its momentum from the person at the handles.
Anyway, we don’t own a gasoline engine-powered mower. We went electric when we moved to town because our yard isn’t that large. We own two such mowers, one that draws its energy through an extension cord and the other via a battery. However, neither is one you’d want to use if the grass is very wet. I don’t think I’d get an electric shock but I’m not brave (or stupid) enough to try.
That’s why we have the old-fashioned push mower. In past seasons, when the grass got away from me, I’d use the push mower first and then, when the grass had dried, the electric mower.
I never had a chance this year. So, when an opportune day came, my wife took it upon herself to help me out. She managed to cut it all except for one small patch where the grass was just too tall and too thick. I finished it off and the next day, one with a nice sunny spring climate, I pulled out the cordless mower and cut the yard again.
Did it need it? Well, I let the grass clippings mulch down into the yard. And, after my wife’s hard work, there were plenty of clippings. I cut the yard to chop them up.
This is just one case where I can brag about my wife. There are many others.
What brings this to mind is a recent news item we published about a local quilt club that takes its name from Proverbs chapter 31 in the Bible. If you’re interested in how the two are connected, read the chapter.
You’ll see what I mean.
Have a good day.
James Pletcher Jr. is Herald-Standard business editor. He can be reached at 724-439-7571 or by e-mail at jpletcher@heraldstandard.com
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