Spent the afternoon trimming trees and the like with my folks. It was some leftover stuff from the infamous ice storm in this area of 2009 and just some stuff that needed to be done. A couple of those were causing some issues with some structures and at least one was pushing a fence over as well. Anyway, it was nice workout and an experience that reminded me much of my youth in a lot of ways.
I admit, I went to the farm to see my horses and just relax for the day. When I got there though, my step dad was about to head out and do some trimming of some trees. There was both a concern, as he is not as young as he used to be and of course I was just bumming around anyway. After deciding it would be a good thing to help with, I re-laced my boots and headed out.
He was already in the tree and running the saw at a largely dead branch. As he moved to a second one, the angle dictated, for safety a move of some stuff stuff on the ground. Running the saw back up to him, he got underway and it came down too. The next branches were questionable though and so we moved to a different tree.
The next tree was one I recall being little more then a sapling in my youth, having climbed it many times. At one point an old car sat beneath the old tree and I think my brother and I must have driving a million miles in that car, shifting gears and everything, going everywhere in the world in our imaginations. And of course no river ever had a bridge in good repair so it all had to be jumped.
This particular tree is the one pushing over a fence and it really needs to go with the amount that is dead in the top of it. Branches came down and quickly I truly felt like I was about ten again, as I started loading them on a wagon to be hauled off later. At one point I suggested a branch would take out the fence with out pulling it as it came down. Maybe I was correct, who knows, but it snagged a Y and found my step dad’s leg and foot. Thankfully he was not hurt to badly so comedy ensued as I debated on letting go of the rope holding the branch versus getting the saw from him up in the tree. Long and short, a big scrape and bruise, but he is good.
Later, as he cut things into firewood pieces and finished trimming, I continued with loaded the debris on the wagon and stacking the wood. It was a good several hours workout and really accomplished something. It is something not often felt in my day to day work anymore and so it was a nice thing. It is also the kind of mindless work that really lets one clearly contemplate issues, whither they be personal, how to take over the world, or solve what ails the world. It was a much needed time in that regard.
Okay, I admit this is perhaps a stretch to the thought, but it is relaxing in that same way working the farm is to me. And hey, when you have a farm it is the kind of thing that always needs to be done.