Lessons from a Lawn Mower

I’m almost ashamed to admit but, before this year, I had never in my life mowed a lawn. Ever. I’d never started a mower or pushed a mower. Actually, I’m not even sure I have actually touched a mower. Though my parents were adamant that I should be able to change my own oil (no, that doesn't mean the Quick Lube place), maintain my own car, and be completely independent at no older than 19, somehow the lawnmower thing went under the radar.

But now, I have a horse. And the horse has a pasture. My horse, my pasture, my chore to mow. Truth be told, I’d have happily mowed the four-acre lawn itself, but my husband said something about "over his dead body". But the pasture ... it’s mine. So I’ve learned to run the large, commercial mower and, along the way, I’ve noticed that not only do I like it (seriously), but there is great metaphor for life in running that mower.

There is a way in which, if you mow at a slower speed, the mower glides smoothly over even the bumpiest, ill-maintained chunk of hay field. Bumps smooth out, become relaxing to ride, even become soothing with the rhythmic up-and-down of the landscape. It’s hypnotic, really. Many dreams have been sculpted on that pasture. But there is a faster speed at which the mower is in constant conflict with the landscape. Every bump jars both mower and rider with all of the force of a battering ram. One can feel, after an acre or so of this constant jarring and bashing, like you’ve been beaten with a baseball bat.

So I, being the type A that I am, always begin at the high speed, bashing myself to death, being tossed around like a little bean-stuffed doll on the mower, resisting, tensing, gritting my teeth. Rather unpleasant, though undoubtedly funny to watch.

And then I remember to simply relax, slow down, and go with the flow. Like on the mower, life also seems to work better when you are going with the natural flow of events. Riding the waves, not resisting them, taking each movement with ease, and not resisting, bracing, or forcing.

If quantum physicists are right, and the universe is at least somewhat random in its functioning, one never really knows what challenges, opportunities, obstacles, or assistance is right around the bend. You never, ever know what’s coming. And yet there are people who fight present circumstances with resistance and blunt force trauma to make their life go the way they think it "should". Watching them live is a little like watching me try to mow the lawn before I figured out the trick ... go with the flow: painful, stressful. And yet there are others who seem to have learned that fighting the flow is futile. They somehow know that slowing down, yielding to the random nature of things, and simply doing the best you can, when you can, and where you can is enough. It's a more peaceful thing to behold.

I see no difference in the levels of success possible for those who go with the flow and those who force success through sheer grit and determination. Both can be “successful”. But those who meet opportunity with preparation and ride the natural evolutionary process of their own life seem much more pleasant to be around. Those who force it out by sheer will and determination tend to be stressed, taxed, and less easy to be with. Doesn’t make them wrong, it’s just a different way to handle life. Same end, different means.

For me, as far as lawn mowing, business, and most of the other stuff as well, I prefer to take a little longer, ride the waves of what random circumstances show up with, feel at ease, and, at moments, feel completely at peace. It seems better than forcing the flow, exhaustings myself, and bringing tension and grit to everyone I meet.

With the exception of the grasshopper guts and horse dung the wind blows back toward the mower, I’ve seen worse ways to spend a sunny Saturday afternoon ... and far worse ways to live a life.