As you should remember from English class, one of the classic struggles is man versus nature. Countless stories, with this conflict at their centers, have been told over hundreds of years - some ending with man as the victor, others ending with nature besting man.
Today, that battle was replayed once again - and in today's contest, man (and woman!) triumphed over nature.
This morning dawned cool and cloudy. Rain was definitely on the way and was forecast to linger throughout the day. But how soon would it arrive? That was a question Brian and I didn't know the answer to as we set out to mow the grass.
We have two mowers, so Brian took the back yard, and I took the front. After about 10 minutes, we started feeling tiny drops of water on our skin. It was starting to drizzle - but just barely. By no means was it enough to cause us to stop mowing, so we continued, with increased fervor.
The spotty drizzle continued as we cut down the grass (hence winning one battle against nature already), but it didn't increase in intensity. After about 40 minutes, we had finished mowing, so we put the mowers away and headed inside. Take that, nature!
About 10 minutes after we came in, the rain that had only been coming down in tiny drops increased to a heavier, steadier rainfall. Now, 40 minutes later, the roads are wet and puddles are starting to form.
I started this post planning to brag about how we triumphed over nature by completing our lawn mowing before the skies opened up, but as I've been writing, I wonder if that was, in fact, more of a collaboration between man and nature - with nature holding back the heavier rain until we were finished with our task.
I would say we still can claim one victory over nature today, in our successful attempt to deter the continued growth of our grass, but as for the timing of our mowing in regards to the rain, I'm wondering if instead we should be thanking nature instead of thumbing our noses at it.
Yes, I know this is all rather silly, but hey, isn't that one of the reasons to have a blog - to post silly thoughts? ;-)
