God and Lawn Care

[jswordy]

You will chuckle as you read this ..... Because as stupid as it may sound, this is exactly what we do!

GOD to ST. FRANCIS:
Frank, you know all about gardens and nature.
What in the world is going on down there on the planet?

What happened to the dandelions, violets, milkweeds and stuff I started eons ago?

I had a perfect no-maintenance garden plan.

Those plants grow in any type of soil, withstand drought and multiply with abandon. The nectar from the long-lasting blossoms attracts butterflies, honey bees and flocks of songbirds. I expected to see a vast garden of colors by now. But, all I see are these green rectangles.

St. FRANCIS:
It's the tribes that settled there, Lord. The Suburbanites.
They started calling your flowers 'weeds' and went to great lengths to kill them and replace them with grass.

GOD:
Grass?
But, it's so boring. It's not colorful. It doesn't attract butterflies, birds and bees; only grubs and sod worms. It's sensitive to temperatures.

Do these Suburbanites really want all that grass growing there?

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently so, Lord. They go to great pains to grow it and keep it green. They begin each spring by fertilizing the grass and poisoning any other plant that crops up in the lawn.

GOD:
The spring rains and warm weather probably make grass grow really fast. That must make the Suburbanites happy.

ST. FRANCIS:
Apparently not, Lord. As soon as it grows a little, they cut it - sometimes twice a week.

GOD:
They cut it? Do they then bale it like hay?

ST. FRANCIS:
Not exactly, Lord. Most of them rake it up and put it in bags.

GOD:
They bag it? Why? Is it a cash crop? Do they sell it?

ST. FRANCIS:
No, Sir, just the opposite. They pay to throw it away.

GOD:
Now, let me get this straight. They fertilize grass so it will grow. And, when it does grow, they cut it off and pay to throw it away?

ST. FRANCIS:
Yes, Sir.

GOD:
These Suburbanites must be relieved in the summer when we cut back on the rain and turn up the heat. That surely slows the growth and saves them a lot of work.

ST. FRANCIS:
You aren't going to believe this, Lord. When the grass stops growing so fast, they drag out hoses and pay more money to water it, so they can continue to mow it and pay to get rid of it.

GOD:
What nonsense. At least they kept some of the trees. That was a sheer stroke of genius, if I do say so myself. The trees grow leaves in the spring to provide beauty and shade in the summer. In the autumn, they fall to the ground and form a natural blanket to keep moisture in the soil and protect the trees and bushes. It's a natural cycle of life.

ST. FRANCIS:
You better sit down, Lord. The Suburbanites have drawn a new circle. As soon as the leaves fall, they rake them into great piles and pay to have them hauled away.

GOD:
No!? What do they do to protect the shrub and tree roots in the winter to keep the soil moist and loose?

ST. FRANCIS:
After throwing away the leaves, they go out and buy something which they call mulch. They haul it home and spread it around in place of the leaves.

GOD:
And where do they get this mulch?

ST. FRANCIS:
They cut down trees and grind them up to make the mulch.

GOD:
Enough! I don't want to think about this anymore.

St. Catherine, you're in charge of the arts. What movie have you scheduled for us tonight?

CATHERINE:
'Dumb and Dumber', Lord. It's a story about....

GOD:
Never mind, I think I just heard the whole story from St. Francis!!!

 

[roger80465]

I have made similar comments for years. And, yes, I am guilty of all of the above.

 

[RevA]

Mind if this gets used in church?

 

[jswordy]

Mind if this gets used in church?

Sounds like a sermon to me!

 

[Steve_M]

Hey so that's where the grass is always greener on the other side came from?


Thanks,

Steve

 

[sour_grapes]

When a thing is funny, examine it carefully for a hidden truth. -- George Bernard Shaw


What many of us do not realize is that this is a relatively recent phenomenon. The whole idea of a lawn dates only to the 19th century. A lawn is a curious thing: it is a sign that you are rich enough that you do not have to use your land productively. In this regard, it is a kind of positional good, or perhaps a display of conspicuous consumption. Once, what we now call "weeds" were the common ground cover. Now, turf grass is by far our largest crop, even though it has little utility, and is terrible for the environment. You can even get in serious trouble just for NOT growing grass, and even arrested for failing to water your lawn!

Clearly, this is madness, as Wordy's joke points out. (Despite what I have written here, I am a relatively mainstream, lawn-owning person.) How can we regain our sanity regarding lawns?

 

[barbiek]

Funny thing is , is that people don't realize mowed grass and leafs both make a great mulch. I drive around town in the fall collecting leaf bags and my yard keeps me supplied with grass clippings so I'm basically mulching for free! I get some looks collecting the bags but hey their still getting rid of it and it's not going to the land fill!