I rolled so much weed this weekend my back hurts, I got carpel tunnel and I can no longer feel my fingers. No, this is not the fun kind of weed. I’m talking about weed weeds, like dandelions and such. I hate yard work so much that I procrastinated to the point that I had to spend the entire weekend on my hands and knee pulling weeds. I need to either meet a guy who likes puttering in the yard or move to a high rise and stick with artificial plants.
The thing I did learn is weeding is sort of a metaphor for life. Let me explain how.
First, if you plan ahead (i.e. do some kind if pre-emergence stuff or so the tell me) then the amount of obstacles (weeds) that show up later will be less. This is so true in life. However, even the best made plans can go astray so you still need to be prepared to deal with the obstacles. So here’s the lessons I learned in my yard this weekend.
Lesson 1: Take life in bite size chunks
As I first looked out on my horribly overgrown yard I was nearly tempted to turn around go back into the house and just pull the shades and never look into the backyard again. Frankly, that is what got me into my mess so I knew that strategy wasn’t going to work.
So I sat down and I said, I’m just going to do this 4’ x 4’ patch. The success of the first patch lead me to do another. On occasion, I’d look up and still see how much I had to go and it would overwhelm me. So I put my head down and just did another 4’ x 4’ patch. When things in life get overwhelming, focus on what you can get done. Pretty soon the big picture will look so much more do-able!
Lesson 2: Take Breaks when you need it
As much as I wanted it to be done and felt I had a self imposed timeline (I wanted to put weed and feed down before it rained on Sunday which it didn’t end up doing so I was a little put out by that – stupid weatherman), sometimes you just need a break, a diversion.
Friday, I worked non-stop to the point my fingers were bleeding and cramping. (I had holes in the fingers of my gloves by the end of the weekend.) I thought this is just ridiculous so I stopped late Friday afternoon. Saturday I refused to put myself through that again. If I didn’t finish by Sunday I would just mow the damn yard down and pretend it was grass.
So Saturday, I’d stop and have a snack, read some email. Each time I came back to my task a refreshed. If your working towards a goal, take a break now and then, it will re-energize your efforts. Probably not advice liked by those a-types.
Lesson 3: Take time to see the beauty and the danger
I was amazed what by some of the stuff I came across during my efforts. First of all, it was nice to be outside and hear the birds singing, the insects chirping and the bubbling of the pool fountain. There were tons of butterflies flitting through the weeds. They were just beautiful. I came across a lady bug that was nearly as big as my thumbnail. There were nice surprises all through the yard.
But there was also some not so great stuff, some really nasty ant piles (note to self go get ant killer) and I found at least a half dozen snake skins. After the first snakeskin, I began a ritual of literally beating the bushes and warning them that I was coming through. Thankfully, I never encountered a real one (the yard may not have been finished if I did) but I am still wondering if they weren’t in the yard where the hell are they.
Lesson 4: You can only really count on yourself
I kept thinking that if I had a couple of people to help I could make double the progress. And people came by, but mostly to entertain, gloat, motivate, laugh or just shake their head in wonder as the mood suited them. But what I realized what is created by my actions (or lack thereof) and it was my responsibility to fix. I also got the sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Recognizing this, I didn’t quite want to cuss them out so bad for just standing there watch me break my back. Although, shouldn’t having a13 year old son entitle you to some free labor? To her credit, mom offered to help but after she heard about the snake skins she refused to step in the yard.
After a victory lap in the yard and field yelling “I did it, I did it, I killed the evil bastards”, I celebrated by ordering a pizza and drinking a nice bottle of wine! That should be its own lesson, celebrate your accomplishments!
Lesson 5: Use sunscreen.
Enough said.
(ok … I just wrote a whole blog on pulling weeds. I need to get a life – lol!)
