Watch Out! I Have Discovered the Empowerment of Yard Work 
Recently, my family and I moved to a new home with a bigger yard and more flower beds to tend. Prior to our current home, we didn’t have a lot of beds to flower and the lawn wasn’t much to have cut. Because of this, we hired help to take care of our yard. Now that we are in a larger home with a larger yard and a larger mortgage, we are pinching pennies by handling the yard work ourselves. Initially, I assumed my husband would be up for the task and never entertained the thought of doing it myself until one rainy morning I had an epiphany while drinking my coffee on the back porch.
What if “I” did the yard work? What if “I” left my husband inside with the kids to make breakfast or give baths or fold a couple hundred baskets of laundry while I push a lawnmower without interruptions or hefted a weed eater with my favorite tunes blasting in my ears and pulled some unwanted weeds while catching some Vitamin D?
What if “I” did the yard work? What if “I” left my husband inside with the kids to make breakfast or give baths or fold a couple hundred baskets of laundry while I push a lawnmower without interruptions or hefted a weed eater with my favorite tunes blasting in my ears and pulled some unwanted weeds while catching some Vitamin D?As I bounced this thought around my head for a few minutes, it didn’t take me long to conclude that I would let my husband know he can leave the heavy duty chores to ME.
To my surprise, my husband didn’t resist my proposal and even went as far as going to Home Depot and picking out a “lightweight” push mower for me that he believed would be easier for me to manage.
The day he came home with it I was just finishing up an unsuccessful attempt at a heart-to-heart with my 12-year-old (teenagers, eyeroll) and was in the mood to blow off some suppressed steam after our conversation. He asked me if I wanted to take her (my new outdoor toy) for a spin and I happily obliged. To my delight, the effort that it took to push the machine and the sweat that beaded on my forehead really helped me release the frustration that I was feeling only minutes before. Not only had I found an outlet to blow pent up frustrations, I had also found some time to be alone with my thoughts, to reflect on a failed attempt at talking with my daughter.
And, if I might add, I felt like a total badass with the instant gratification that it entailed – seeing my hard work pay off.
After my first experience beautifying our new yard, I was downright hooked. The next time I would be completely ready. I created a Girl Flex playlist on my Amazing Music account because I wanted the music blasting in my ears to reflect the empowerment that I was feeling doing what many consider, “a man’s job.” I promise I will also share said playlist with you because, well, it’s awesome and I found myself dancing along to it in between water breaks.
Sometimes, I am “one of those” who wakes up at 5:30 am to cut the grass at sunrise (I promise I don’t do this on the weekend). It’s almost intoxicating, getting a major chore checked off the list while listening to some bangerz AND watching the sun rise. It’s the literal trifecta.
