Illumination Writing Challenge

Sweet Sublime Sounds of Summer

To the neighbor with love

When I go out and mow the lawn I always make sure I do it just after dawn The neighbors may not agree with my choice of time But I happen to think that early is sublime

There are no people out and about It’s hard to talk while mowing anyway; you have to shout The engine noise is so very loud I would rather be out there without a crowd

It is cooler in early morning, sometimes you even catch a nice breeze It makes it more pleasant; I tool around the lawn with ease There are no kids riding scooters on the sidewalk to get in my way I guess their parents think it is too early to let them out to play

When you get to my age, there is one thing you learn There is nothing more unpleasant than a needless sunburn For if you must know, that is one reason why I mow my lawn when the sun is low in the sky

The are other reasons I mow my lawn early in the day Like anyone, I just want to get my chores out of the way Then I can go and do anything I wish Play golf, hang glide or maybe even fish

I don’t have to be bound by the duty to mow With all my work done, I can pack up and go But those aren’t the main reason I mow my lawn so early in the day It wasn’t always like this, things didn’t begin this way

It wasn’t until my neighbor started playing loud music late into the night That was when I had to sit down and consider my plight. It seems the good neighbor is a bit of a night owl Until all hours he likes to party, dance, screech and howl

I really had no choice in the matter the die was already cast I had no recourse, I had to remain steadfast In this battle of wills, who would give first The only way to combat ignorance is to make the roles reversed

So, as I fire up my industrial leaf blower to blast the trimmings off the walk I have to smile a little at myself for my solution to this deadlock I wave to the neighbor as he glares out his window at me in disbelief His lips say, “It’s F**cking five in the morning, motherf**cker, good grief!”

But I don’t heed him, not a word can be heard Over the din of the leaf blower, the sound of his voice is merely inferred Can’t leave grass clippings on the sidewalk, that would be rude You really can’t accuse me of having an unneighborly attitude.

My chores all done, I now head inside A cup of coffee for me is certainly justified Content with chores done and point certainly made I guess it’s time to replace my hearing aids

All that noise of the mower is just too much to take Who can put up with that, I mean; give me a break Come to think of it, maybe that is how I get though All that din at night, the musical hullabaloo

I get all cozy in bed and when I am ready and able I take out my hearing aids and drop them on the bedside table I sleep like a baby; warm, cozy unperturbed My sleep quite refreshing; slumber undisturbed

And my friends you see that is why You never want to get in a one-up sound match with an old guy We get up earlier than you, and have loads of free time And revving up our loud power tools is our favorite pastime!

If you like this, you might like some of my other recent writing:

A recent poetic response to a prior challenge:

And another more spontaneous poem:

Timothy Key spent over 26 years in the fire service as a firefighter/paramedic and various fire chief management roles. He firmly believes that bad managers destroy more than companies, and good managers create a passion that is contagious. Compassion, grace and gratitude drive the world; or at least they should. Follow me on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and join the mail list.