Janice stepped outside into the postage stamp sized yard at
the back of her condo. She took a deep
breath and the scent of the lilacs next door filled her nostrils with
delight. It was a beautiful late spring
day and she was looking forward to tidying up her little garden. Sitting on her park bench, she considered
what to do first. The bird feeders
needed cleaning so she decided to tackle that first.
As she worked on cleaning out the old seeds she noticed there
were birds lined up along the fence waiting for the feeder to return. They were peeping and chirping at her to
hurry up. Well, that’s what she chose to
believe. Janice liked to think that she
had a connection with all creatures and truly believed they communicated with
her on a regular basis. She quickly
washed the feeder and set it in the sun to dry before adding the new
seeds.
Next, she tackled the dandelions. They had been left to flower because the
bees told her the dandelions were the first food they could find after the long
winter. But now they had gone to seed
and there were other flowers blooming so she didn’t feel bad digging them
up. Janice loved popping up weeds with her
special tool. She happily dug down into
the earth and found the base of the root.
It made a satisfying snap as the root left the earth and dandelion popped
out of the ground, leaving a nice clean patch of grass in its place. Wonderful!
There was a worm lying on the grass and Janice picked it up
thinking she might put it on the fence for the birds. But the worm wanted her to put it in the
earth so it could grow fatter and be an even better morsel for the birds. Janice loved the way nature was so connected
and each creature benefited the earth and each other in their own way. She wished she could be a creature too. All of her life she had been deeply ashamed
of being a member of a species that was so grossly disrespectful of their
planet. Placing the worm in the flower
bed, Janice continued her weeding.
An hour later she had finished the weeding, trimmed the
bushes, and replaced the bird feeders.
The birds had been grateful for the nice clean feeder and for the
delicious birdseed that Janice had provided on their recommendation. An abundance of sunflower seeds mixed in
with other tasty seeds was always popular with the diverse bird population.
Sweaty and hot she sat on the bench again to catch her
breath. She closed her eyes and
listened to the sounds of the back yard.
The birds chirping happily at the feeder, the squirrels scurrying around,
chasing each other up and down the trees.
In the distance, she could hear an alarmed squirrel calling out a warning. Janice loved her little oases. It rejuvenated
her spirit and allowed her to forget, for a while, that she lived in a noisy
bustling city. The sounds of her neighbours
felt far away and disconnected from her.
She was having a conversation with a squirrel who had
appeared on the fence above her when she heard them. The landscapers! How she hated the landscapers with their loud
and smelly equipment. Even though she
knew they were necessary, she resented their intrusion on her peace and
quiet. And there were so many of
them!
First would come the man on the riding lawn mower, moving
faster than could possibly be safe. He barreled
along the common areas spewing grass and leaves and sticks all over the
place. After he left, exhaust fumes
hung in the air, masking the sweet smell of the fresh-cut grass.
Riding Mower was followed by Power Mower who came and cut the
individual yards that were too small for the riding mower. Power Mower was quick and efficient but he
wasn’t any quieter than Riding Mower.
Janice noticed the birds and squirrels had scurried off and she longed
to scurry with them. She went inside
before Power Mower man came to her yard.
Pouring herself a glass of ice-cold lemonade she sat in her
easy chair and looked out at her yard.
Power Mower was there and then gone in a flash. Then came Weed Whacker. Weed Whacker, with
his gas-powered machine, was also quick and gone in no time. Her yard looked neat and well-groomed and she
was grudgingly grateful for their care.
And then came Leaf Blower.
Janice loathed Leaf Blower with every fibre of her being. Just hearing him coming set her heart racing
and her blood pressure rising. Of all
the ridiculous tools that men used, this one was the worst. Noisier than any of the others and much
smellier it was a completely unnecessary piece of equipment. Janice called them Penis Compensators. She was disgusted at the way men swung them
around at waist level, blowing dirt and grass and leaves everywhere. All the pine cones at the bottom of the
trees, food for the birds and squirrels, were blown into a pile by these
terrible machines. She heard the
insects screaming as their homes were being destroyed and it was all she could
do not to run outside, grab the offending tool and beat the man over the head
with it. She had even seen a man with
TWO leaf blowers going at once. Many
times she had seen as many as three men all blowing the same pile of debris around
and around the ground. It was ridiculous. Would it kill them to use a rake?
As she watched Leaf Blower doing his damage, she thought
back to her childhood and the Saturday mornings she had her dad would work
together on the yard. It had been so
peaceful back then. Her father loved to
use the push mower and would not hear of getting a power mower like the
neighbours had. He couldn’t stand the
noise and why pay good money for that when the push mower did a great job. Janice’s job was to rake up the grass
clippings and pick up any other branches and leaves that had fallen in the
yard. They worked together in companionable
silence, each of them enjoying being outdoors and working in nature. A tear slid down Janice’s cheek. She missed him so much!
Finally, the landscapers were finished and all was
quiet. Janice grabbed the bag of shelled
peanuts she kept for her squirrels and went back outside. Everything looked fresh and the air was sweet
again with all the fragrances of the summer.
She sat on her bench and opened the bag and waited. Before long she had two visitors eager for a
treat. Holding a peanut in her hand she
waited and sure enough one of the squirrels came and took the peanut from
her. He knew she was one of them in a
human body and he trusted her.
Janice spent the rest of the day in her garden, listening
and talking to the birds and squirrels.
All was right in her world and she was happy once again.
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