Friday, July 13, 2007

gettin' aLAWNg

Comparing your site to a room in your house, which room would it be? LL Barkat lets us hang out in her living room, and Charity sees us in her kitchen. For me, it's probably my front yard.

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I enjoy standing in the grass with my neighbors, friends and relatives, talking about whatever. I prefer to have a conversation out there, than even inside the house or in the backyard.

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At home, I have experienced a certain unspoken etiquette about front-yard conversations. We can discuss all kinds of things, but I have never had a heavy front-yard debate. Most of the discussion is light, but that does not necessarily exclude profound exchanges. In fact, right there, in my driveway, one of my neighbors prayed to receive Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior.

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Yeah, this blog reminds me of my front lawn. Simple, neat, not argumentative, but casual and occasionally (albeit rarely) profound.

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Only two people have ever provoked me to use the delete comment option in the blog. Er... it doesn't work quite like that out front, though. But yes, in case you're wondering, I have had conversations in both places where someone and I disagreed and we were still able to keep things civil and polite.

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Image by... me! (That's my real house.)

16 comments:

HAREKRISHNAJI said...

nice blog

L.L. Barkat said...

And here out on the lawn, it is a breath of fresh air! :)

Even So... said...

Take it out back, buddy, we don't serve that kind of stuff up front...

M. CHRISTOPHE said...

Hello

You had enjoyed my photo blog some days ago...come again....today " the devil is passes"

MamaToo said...

...and your blog, much like that lawn of yours, causes me to look on in admiration (and perhaps a tiny bit of envy) at its intentional simplicity, well-watered health, and hospitality.

Craver Vii said...

Thanks, Harry. I couldn't read anything on your blog. Interesting pictures, though. I would like to know more about the work in the slums. It might be interesting. I have been enjoying many things Indian this year.

Fresh? Not only fresh LL, but the scent of freshly cut grass, and check this out... If you swipe your hands through the juniper bush a couple times, (inhaling deeply) aaaaaahhhh, doesn't that smell great?

*hic!* What stuff?? (whispering) I don't know where you stand on drinking, JD. My wife doesn't drink at all, and won't kiss me when I drink a beer.

Bonjour mon ami. Cool! Night pictures. The devil in those pictures reminds me of a mime. Coincidetally, mimes remind me of...

Too kind, Mamatoo. The care I put into nice, straight edges may give a good first impression, but anyone who takes their time and looks closely, will see that I have just as much a struggle with weeds as anyone else.

Lifelong Learner said...

We don't have a lawn. We really, really miss lawns.

I got to help my dad build our house in high school (that 5'1" stature is a benefit when INSTALLING cabinets), which had a huge front porch with a porch swing. There are a lot of great memories on that front porch, with friends, family. We'd sit out on the porch swing, and if someone drove by and saw us, they'd just pull right in and have a chat.

When we finally settle down and own a home again, I will definitely have a lawn, a front porch, and a porch swing. With a big ol' glass of ice tea on the side.

Pete Juvinall said...

The analogy really works. If you think about it, blogs need tending to, 'watering', and general thought and care as to how it all comes together.

So, can I pee in your bushes? :)

david mcmahon said...

G'day Craver,

Nice post - really got me thinking. My blog is my family room - we spend lots of time there, comfort zone, easy pace.

Great perspective from you. Thank you.

Cheers

David

Cuckoo said...

Hi Craver,
Nice front yard you have with all open space & lawn and so is your blog... clean, uncluttered.

What all Indian things you enjoyed this year, may I ask ?

Keep posting. :)

Craver Vii said...

Stacy, you're half-an-inch taller than my dad. More, probably, because he's 70 and shrinking.

I don't usually water my lawn, Pete. But when you visit, I'll probably water the nasty bushes afterwards. (lol)

Family room. I like that, David. It is always a pleasure to visit your living room. You are an excellent host.

Craver Vii said...

Hi Cuckoo! The many things Indian can I recall that I have enjoyed recently? Let's see...
* There's the Indian lady from church who I work with every Thursday night in a compassion ministry to our local community.
* My son's soccer coach is Indian. When the coaches selected teams, I think he picked all the Indian kids in that age bracket. So at the games and practices, I was hanging out with my new Indian friends.
* Guess what we ate at our Independence Day celebration? We grilled some of the standards for the main course, but as appetizers, we had sumosa. Mmmmm... delicious!
* I have recently seen new friends from England and Australia who are of Indian descent. And then of course, I am absolutely delighted to see the Site Meter reports that show visiting dots from India.

I expect that when I get to heaven, there will be an ethnic mix that is quite different from many American churches. Taking into account the many followers of Jesus from all over the world and from all those years, the average complexion will be darker and wonderfully mixed, as the saving arms of the Lord have reached far and wide to redeem his beloved.

L.L. Barkat said...

Oh, btw, I see now why you have the chemical temptation. That's some sweet looking lawn image to preserve!

Craver Vii said...

LL, the chemicals are less tempting after reading Steingraber's Living Downstream.

You can't see it from this angle, but there is a whole bunch of spearmint next to the big bush in the corner near the fence.

A quick spray over the lawn would thicken and green it up real nice, wiping out a few weeds at the same time, but even if I don't spray directly on the weeds, the chemicals in the weed killer is absorbed by the roots of the spearmint we and our neighbors like to use for tea, not to mention that the runoff eventually goes into the water table. I wish we could be absolutely certain that these herbicides were not carcinogenic or harmful to people in any other way.

spaghettipie said...

What a lovely green lawn. Makes me want to take my shoes off and walk in it...but I'll steer clear of the bushes.

MamaToo said...

I've enjoyed thinking about this analogy. Funny how it's so tempting to spray for great appearances and easy results, even in face of lasting & far-reaching harm. The hard work of finding each weed & pulling (or digging) them out is daunting, and it takes strength and patience. But how much more effective and truly beautiful to have the invasive things pulled out by the roots...