Strange morning it was on Monday, July 21, 2008. Earlier that morning, our son asked, “Dad, can I fry eggs for breakfast?” At first, I said, “No, you don’t have enough time before your football camp.” Then I realized the camp would start an hour later than I remembered.
“Yes, you may fry some eggs,” I gave him the green light.
That same morning, our 14-year-old daughter got my attention with this strange request: “Can I mow the lawn?”
“Hahn?” I asked … shocked.
She seemed serious. “I want to mow the lawn to get paid $10.”
“Why does she want to fool with the lawn mower?” I asked mentally. “She got paid $50 a couple of weeks ago for typing my 164-page Liberian war journal. And now she wants to risk ripping into her legs with a lawn mow in the name of 10 bucks?”
Certain that there was no way this muscle-challenge young lady would survive that Craft lawn mower, I followed her behind the house to go through the motions in order to prove one point: This is NOT a girl’s job!
“OK. First, this is how you pull the lawn mower out of the shed. It’s kind of heavy. Second, you check the gasoline tank to see if it needs gas. Third, you check the engine oil level. Then you prime it about 5 times to get some gas to the engine. Now, you pull and hold this handle; push this part to the Start position; and you pull on the rope with some real force.”
I started the machine only to shut it off. She took over and got several weak pulls and false starts. I thought it was only fair to coach her some more, just to remove all doubts that I had given her a fair shot like I would have done with her brother.
“Left foot in front; right foot behind; bend forward a little; then lean back as you pull on the rope to get the engine going. Once it’s running, you push this one to the Throttle position, and you’re ready to mow!”
Daneto stepped up again. After a few more false starts, she had that thing roaring, then humming. With that, I left my daughter on the lawn and re-entered the house, expecting the girl to turn her back on the lawn mower and join me in the house any time soon.
“She’ll find out that pushing a lawn mower is a boy’s job,” I told myself.
Finally, I shouted one more command, “Keep your feet away from the blades at all costs.”
The last thing I wanted was the blade slicing into that girl’s sneakers.
“Boy what would her mom think of me, if she were to come home from work and see her daughter injured by the lawn mow? Well, dear, she insisted on cutting the lawn for money!”
In about 20 minutes later that girl had mowed along the sides of the house and the entire backyard, except for a strip of grass along our neighbor’s fence.
Meanwhile, Tojyea (T), our son did a good job too, frying those eggs. But somehow I wished he were the one behind the lawn mower and his teenage sister in the kitchen working those eggs.
Did I say my son CAN mow the lawn too? OK, yes, he does mow the lawn, and every time he does, he gets paid … you guessed it … $10.
“Yes, you may fry some eggs,” I gave him the green light.
That same morning, our 14-year-old daughter got my attention with this strange request: “Can I mow the lawn?”
“Hahn?” I asked … shocked.
She seemed serious. “I want to mow the lawn to get paid $10.”
“Why does she want to fool with the lawn mower?” I asked mentally. “She got paid $50 a couple of weeks ago for typing my 164-page Liberian war journal. And now she wants to risk ripping into her legs with a lawn mow in the name of 10 bucks?”
Certain that there was no way this muscle-challenge young lady would survive that Craft lawn mower, I followed her behind the house to go through the motions in order to prove one point: This is NOT a girl’s job!
“OK. First, this is how you pull the lawn mower out of the shed. It’s kind of heavy. Second, you check the gasoline tank to see if it needs gas. Third, you check the engine oil level. Then you prime it about 5 times to get some gas to the engine. Now, you pull and hold this handle; push this part to the Start position; and you pull on the rope with some real force.”
I started the machine only to shut it off. She took over and got several weak pulls and false starts. I thought it was only fair to coach her some more, just to remove all doubts that I had given her a fair shot like I would have done with her brother.
“Left foot in front; right foot behind; bend forward a little; then lean back as you pull on the rope to get the engine going. Once it’s running, you push this one to the Throttle position, and you’re ready to mow!”
Daneto stepped up again. After a few more false starts, she had that thing roaring, then humming. With that, I left my daughter on the lawn and re-entered the house, expecting the girl to turn her back on the lawn mower and join me in the house any time soon.
“She’ll find out that pushing a lawn mower is a boy’s job,” I told myself.
Finally, I shouted one more command, “Keep your feet away from the blades at all costs.”
The last thing I wanted was the blade slicing into that girl’s sneakers.
“Boy what would her mom think of me, if she were to come home from work and see her daughter injured by the lawn mow? Well, dear, she insisted on cutting the lawn for money!”
In about 20 minutes later that girl had mowed along the sides of the house and the entire backyard, except for a strip of grass along our neighbor’s fence.
Meanwhile, Tojyea (T), our son did a good job too, frying those eggs. But somehow I wished he were the one behind the lawn mower and his teenage sister in the kitchen working those eggs.
Did I say my son CAN mow the lawn too? OK, yes, he does mow the lawn, and every time he does, he gets paid … you guessed it … $10.
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