A Dignified Worker

I didn't have the benefit of being a stay-at-home mom, like Mrs. Romney, however, her husband, Mitt, feels  that women should know the "dignity of work".  Therefore, promoting myself as a prime example of  this tenet, I am killing myself, working at home.

Lawd, Lawd, Sistah Girl keeps coming up with these ideas to make improvements to Serendipity. The tasks seem so simple and non-time consuming. They really do.  Of course, I have completely ignored basic facts such as: age; a lack of help; and a lack of strength.

What are you doing now, Missy?  Forgoing all the task which remain uncompleted inside and focusing on the outside.  See, I had this brilliant vision of a flower bed, extending from the front walkway to the back door. Can't you see it? Beautiful, isn't it?  But good help is hard to find. And, I totally disregarded the inability to fully use the right arm. And while it has taken far longer than envisioned, I'm working it.

Slowly, a bit at a time, I dug the trench for the landscape timbers. Smoothed the soil (a coworker tilled the ground), started the seeds, and laid the weed barrier. Put in azaleas--love them. The seeds will take forever to mature, so I'm putting in bulbs, potted annuals and perennials to give the bed a finished look.  Oh, finished?  That means mulch, of which I still have a small mound in the garage from a few years ago.  That means shoveling, hauling, and dumping; not to mention smoothing it out.  Lord, does my arm hurt or what?

It will be winter before I am finished with all of the necessary outdoor chores.  All of the flower beds need tender loving care and the magnificent magnolias are shedding dead leaves and seed pods by the gazillion.  The urns and railing to the street need scraping and painting; the swing needs painting; and the planters for the back patio need to be filled.  Oh, did I forget that I have to find something to replace the bush which "yardman" cut to the ground? And that the garage needs to be cleaned out? 

Thought that I had found a willing pair of hands to assist.  But, as usual, they didn't show.  So I'm on my own. It'll get done...before winter. And I still intend to put in a small patio in the side yard.  How hard can that be?

One thing is for sure and another for certain, there's enough work here at home to keep me employed. I do know the "dignity of work."

Be Safe. Be Blessed.