Well,
I actually gave up a fishing trip yesterday.
Not that it was some big event planned for weeks or anything. I was just hoping to go out to the beach and
do a little wade fishing. It’s been a
long time. But, the beachfront was
pretty choppy when I checked the beachcams on the computer, and I remembered
that it was Friday. What’s so big about
Friday? Well, in Galveston at my house
Friday in the summer generally means it’s time to mow the grass. And it was.
Sigh. Guess my sense of
responsibility usurped my deepest inner desires. This time.
As
generally happens, I took care of the mowing and edging while Chris tackled
flower beds. She really has the back
yard looking great. It didn’t really
take all that long to do the mowing and edging, so I made the mistake of
pondering the trees. See, Chris had told
me at breakfast that there was already a tropical disturbance working its way
into the Gulf. We’ll probably see
evidence of it sometime about the middle of next week, if it stays on
track. And that always adds one more
step to our homeowner summer preparations for storm season. It was time to trim some trees.
Not
the huge pruning jobs that happen in the Fall when the trees start losing
leaves. This one has nothing to do with
the shaping and beautifying of the plant.
It has everything to do with getting it out of the way. The obvious place that needs help is anywhere
a branch has access to the roof. At the very
least the wind from the storm can cause the branches to sway and scrape and
totally ruin shingles. At the worst a
branch can break off and land on the roof, doing even worse damage. We have seen the effects of both. Another potential disaster is when tree
branches hit against or fall onto power lines, or in our case, power lines,
computer access lines (telephone) and
cable lines. They all run right through
a Brazilian Pepper tree that has taken up residence right on the property line
(other side) between us and 40 Steps
(the lot next door, which, by the way,
has allegedly been “officially” sold.
Still has a For Sale sign on it, though, so our hopes, however slight, remain).
After
a brief foray onto the roof to take care of some minor trimming there, I attacked
the pepper tree with a vengeance. I got
the lines free from the alien incursion, but it took the last few hours of
energy I had left. It was hot again. Something like 80 degrees with a heat index
of 98. We drank plenty of water, and
even found reason to walk through the house every so often, so it wasn’t too
bad. It did warrant a nap in the afternoon,
though. I don’t think it was
optional. I was out like a light. Yard looks good, though. We’re still praying the storm season is a
light one for Galveston.
James
1:5-6 says, “But if any of you lacks
wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach,
and it will be given to him. But he must
ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of
the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.”
Father,
watch over out Island, our home, for the next few months in particular. Amen.
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