A Poet's Guide to the Philosophy of Lawnmowing

 

 

 

 

Mowing the lawn is such a chore.

It makes my body tired and sore.

Why do we persist in insisting so

That grass can't be allowed to grow?

We plant the stuff right in our yards.

It keeps away the weeds and dust

And serves its purpose admirably,

So we lop off its ends periodically.

Isn't this a cycle strange?

Faithful servant grass obeys;

It covers the entire yard.

Reward?  Chop off its body parts.

The bodies of the almost-living

Strewn among the truly dead

Until the executioner

Returns to steal another head

To quell grassy rebellion weak

And be the ruler of one's yard

Is not only a tedious task,

But cruel and boring, vicious, hard.

The senseless stalemate never ends,

The fighting of perpetual growth

To plant a seed and stunt its life

Seems quite counterintuitive.

The time it takes to mow the yard

Just isn't worth the small reward.

A moment's respite from the fight

Is all that's gained by this show of spite.

Cutting the grass: a brutal act

And pointless too in all respects,

But before you agree, just to be fair

I think the same of trimming hair.

 

 

Growing Up

Every child wants to grow up.  Most children do so. Only then can they understand the blessings of childhood.   I turn 18 today, and I've been thinking about growing up a lot over the past few weeks.  The number 18 is arbitrary. Throughout history, there have been 15 year old adults, and today there are too many 30 year old children.  The number is not what's important, but maturity. However, reaching the social benchmark of 18 years is what provoked these thoughts. 

     Childhood is a beautiful and interesting time.  Children are full of potential, but there is not much that they really are.  They have no specific role in life, so virtually every role is open to them. To be a child is to be the embodiment of the possibilities of life.  It's impossible to tell what a child will do, be it in the next hour or the next 30 years. They have very little identity beyond being a child, but the potential to have almost any identity in the future. This is why children are constantly learning.  It takes an enormous amount of information to build and shape that potential. Children are always growing, not just physically, but intellectually and in personality. Childhood cannot last forever. Despite their potential, children are immature, irresponsible, and dependent.  This state of potential cannot last forever. Eventually we must sacrifice the potential of childhood for the actuality of adulthood.

     Children are irresponsible and dependant.  These things keep them reliant on their parents.  This is often the reason children want to grow up.  They want the independence and freedom of adulthood.  They want to be able ti do what they choose, without having to ask for their parents' approval, and this is good.  Children should aspire to be independent. Not relying on other people to support your existence is necessary for an adult.  However, independence is not alone. It is inextricably tied to responsibility. A person cannot be free if they can't be responsible for themselves.  This is why children cannot be independent, however much they might want to. They do not have the sense of responsibility necessary to support their independence.  The irresponsibility of children is their potential. They have no real duty. The responsibilities a person takes on is the actuality of adulthood. This is growing up.

     So then, children embody potential in their lack of responsibilities, and people are defined in adulthood by their responsibilities.  Adults have their duties, while children have not yet discovered theirs. As I move forward, I want to strive for responsibility and independence, the actuality of adulthood.  At the same time, however, I don't want to lose the childlike ability to change, nor the constant growth of youth. Though I hope to become an adult in identity, I wish to remain a child at heart.

Go Lick a Swingset

Go Lick a Swingset

By: Samuel Hammock

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

That's how the saying goes.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Go lick a swingset, kids.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger,

Though it may make you weak.

Recovery will follow in the future,

And it brings with it strength.

A city was invaded, its walls broken;

Survivors scavenge streets.

In time, the city was rebuilt, a new age,

And stronger than before.  

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

That's how the saying goes.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Go lick a swingset, kids.

We vaccinate our kids to keep them healthy,

Injecting sicknesses.

It helps them all to build up antibodies,

Immunization's goal.

We ponder all the wrong ideas and worldviews

That people sometimes hold.

In entertaining arguments opposing,

We make our defense bold.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

That's how the saying goes.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Go lick a swingset, kids.

A man once lost his job and livelihood,

Deep in depression dove,

Back from the brink returned to face the future,

God's fortitude in soul.

A child is taking her first steps on two legs.

She falls and cries aloud.

The next time she will stagger that much further.

Her skill will come in time.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

That's how the saying goes.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Go lick a swingset, kids.

Experience should always make us better,

And failure teaches much.

The risks both small and great that we encounter

Are opportunities.

It is important to know our own limits,

Just how far we can go.

The best way to learn life is just to live it.

It's too short to go slow.

A day that doesn't end you makes you wiser:

That's how the living goes.

A thing that doesn't kill you makes you stronger.

Go lick a swingset, kids.