May 8 – “The move”

Chris and I had some outdoor together time yesterday.  It started with our three mile walk.  Well, if you don’t count as outdoor time my rolling our garbage cans out to the street for pickup.  That is certainly a feat of gargantuan athletic proportions.  And I did do it by myself.  So beyond my little bonus excursion, then …

Chris had me dig up her bougainvillea bush.  Not that it was being particularly offensive or was in the final throes of death or anything.  She just decoded she would like it better on the other side of the yard, up against the new fence.  That meant some serious trimming so we could get to the root system - trimming of that part of that particular plant that IS most assuredly offensive.  The branches are full of large, sharp evil thorns that do everything in their power to leap from behind and within leaf clusters to puncture unsuspecting body parts.  Uncaring.  No respecter or persons.  Pure, unadulterated evil.  But with Chris’ blessing I was given permission to take out all my frustrations from previous encounters.  The trimming has begun.  Oh, it fought back.  Chris pointed out blood on my arm several times, but I was not to be deterred.  The bush would be moved.  And I was, in a word, successful.  The bush, now bereft of most of its young and particularly offensive branches, has been moved.  Now we water and wait and see if the growth continues in its new place in the sun.

Exhilarated by that success, Chris moved around a few other smaller plants, but then she made a decision about the other bush that is growing like crazy – the wisteria.  It’s the one that grows on the chain link fence remaining from when our neighbors behind us put up a wood fence.  We had to take down a major section of it when we built our own wood fence, but now we are ready to attack the rest.  And that began with attacking the wildly growing branches that have ignored the fence and are seeping underground to burst forth in new arenas.  We tugged and pulled and chopped and hauled to the street for what seemed like hours.  Made a little progress, I suppose, but we still haven’t even begun on the side that will require wire cutters and shovels and hauling concrete along with trimmers and clippers.  Sigh.  Great to have something to look forward to after the rain stops, right?

Oh, and we did make a quick run to WalMart for some groceries.  Problem was, Chris refused to get out of the car when we first arrived.  See, she had just washed her “attractive” pink jacket, and a fairly large flock of seagulls was hovering about …

1 Peter 4:10 says, “Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms.”

Father, thank you for the miraculous way you have created plants to grow and be beautiful … and to protect themselves.  Amen.