Storytime: Mowing tall grass in the rain

On the flight home, I should have been thinking about the vacation I was leaving behind.

Surfers and ships, Mai Tais and margaritas. I saw history and happiness and happened to be lucky to check this trip off my list.

Vacation was not what I was thinking about.

On the midnight ride from the airport, I was looking up the weather and worrying about what I would find when I got home. There was a plan in place before I left, but that plan fell apart. I never thought much about it, but now it was all I could think about.

I need to mow my yard.

“I need to mow, I need to mow, I need to mow my yard” was the catchy tune playing inside my head. I didn’t mow before vacation because we had a rainy spell that wouldn’t go away. So I left knowing the grass would continue to grow and would be waiting for me when I got home.

I was right, of course.

I arrived home in the wee hours and slept fitfully knowing what I had to look forward to the next day. It wasn’t my suitcase full of dirty clothes, my empty refrigerator, or pile of delayed mail that made me toss and turn.

I need to mow my yard.

It was much worse in the daylight than in the dark. Grass was shin deep and there were places in the yard where the weeds had sprouted seeds and were now blowing in the wind. All the neighbors’ lawns were neatly mowed and clipped.

Then there was mine.

That first day after vacation, the weather report was not encouraging, and the dark clouds were backing it up. Mowing was going to have to wait. In between laundry loads and mail sorting, I looked out the window at the rain and paced.

I need to mow my yard.

The second day after vacation, the forecast was inconclusive. I watched the local radar and the clouds, calculating the time before the next rain chance. Then I made a decision.

I need to mow my yard.

The mower started right up, and away I went on course for my usual mow. My next-door neighbor was hosting an outdoor gathering, so I quickly decided to mow in reverse and do my last part first and first part last. Between reverse mowing and the tall grass still damp from the day before, it made for slow going.

Or rather, slow mowing.

I noticed the sky turning gray when my yard was only half mowed. I tried bumping up to turbo speed but, with the tall grass, speed was not my friend. All the while, I could feel the weather breathing down my neck.

I need to mow my yard.

By now, my other next-door neighbor had started mowing his own yard just as it began to sprinkle. The rain was still a mist without a hint of lightning, so I kept mowing because, surely, the rain would pass.

The rain didn’t pass.

Instead, the rain picked up but so did my determination. By then, my glasses were covered and my hair was plastered to my head. Through the increasing rain, I looked at the unmowed grass I had remaining, and then over at my neighbor who was looking over at me.

Both of us kept mowing.

I know I should have quit. The grass was too tall and the rain too much, but I was almost done. I didn’t want to stop and spend the rest of my night thinking about mowing the next day. As I pushed the wet hair out of my face, it felt like my whole summer would be consumed with weather radars and weekly forecasts when all I want to do is mow my lawn. So I mowed in the rain and by the time my yard was done, so was I.

Now I need another vacation.

You can reach Lorry at lorrysstorys@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Storytime: Mowing tall grass in the rain