The chain link that goes maybe two hundred feet around the perimeter of the property is largely laced with plastic fence tape — weave some name it. It’s rolled in a spool and pieces are cut off to fit the lengths and it is hand-woven in and out of the wire chains as one pleases.
Hours and hours were spent, standing and moving along the fence weaving the pieces in and out so that the property would be hidden some from view of the close and highly-trafficked road. What was going to go on behind the fence, most wouldn’t want to see — a garden, a hopeful food forest with less-than-manicured, more as-it-pleased growing things in ways that included weeds and leaves left where they fell. Lots of people walked the sidewalk too, and that made it even easier to see.
It was just a precaution against complaints — another freedom-seeking measure. The time wasn’t wasted but it was a lot of time. And then there was the time spent doing it for someone else for hire. Now that did seem like wasted time — trading time for money — though it seemed essential to be able to keep the house with the chain link fence that was already woven.
As soon as the weaving for hire was finished, days later the client died and her friends came to pull those rigid, precut lacings out to keep for themselves. As an employer might have said, “Well, you were paid for it weren’t you?”
See, the problem is with wanting to see the results of labor standing for the test of time — at least long enough to admire.
Expectations.
And the other problem was with the expectation that her friends not show so much immediate greed. But, it wasn’t anyone else’s business what kind of friends she wanted to keep.
Phooey! On to food forests and better ways of spending time not on someone else’s dime.
There were days and years of horrible anxiety and uncertainty and a stoic might have seen those days as worthy of a reason to exit by ones own hand because it seemed unbearable — but it wasn’t — completely unbearable. Someone’s still here to talk about it. And stoics all agree to keep on trying.
What doesn’t kill… It might have seemed it could, but it didn’t and only waiting and getting through it would tell.
Though no one can know what someone else can bear.
It’s easy to see in hindsight what could have been a better use of time — but that was then and this is now and it goes on from here with what might seem was wasted but was, as it was, still built from there.
What is wont to happen might not be what does. Being at the ready for surprise — be it good or be it bad — might be the difference how we can survive and even thrive. It’s only while we’re living that either good or bad preside.
We may take example to adapt like a plant — most aren’t very easily devastated or if they are, they very often snap back in no uncertain terms.
The least we can do is the best that we can because there may not be an honest man to serve as an example.
Geoff Lawton on weeds. YouTube
Writing Spool 