No Machete in This Area

Lesson from Nature #3

Vines of three strands are not easily snapped. Okay, that’s not the literal and Biblical standard. The real version …

Ecclesiastes 4:12 — “A Cord of Three Strands Is Not Quickly Broken”

Recently, as I was working to blaze and clear a new portion of the Heritage Trail I cut about two years ago. We have determined that one section was poorly chosen (by me, I admit) for, when it rains, the natural water flow goes straight through a few dozen yards of the trail. However, the water remained and made it quite strong seed material for a blog named “Muddy Shoes.”

Being muddy, I deduced the best option was to divert the trail and bypass as much of the potential muddy section of the trail.

I took my Skill tools out and began to clear the few hundred yards section – of which 40-50 feet is very – VERY – overgrown. Most of this overgrowth was grass and weeds and a few thorny vines. But some of the yardage was thick with a mixture of thick vines and fallen limbs and trees, albeit smaller arboreal foliage.

I learned that when the limbs and thicker vines were intertwined, they were very difficult to hack/slash/trim. I did not have a chain saw (I am not sure they trust me with that heavy a piece of equipment … I desire to keep all twenty digits) so I had to do it one vine, one limb, one branch at a time.

I wish it was as easy as grabbing my machete (yes I have that) and start slashing.

But no … it had to be … one … at … a … time.

Eventually it was cleared. The new stretch of the trail is coming clear. And the hazardous mud trail has been bypassed.

So I began to ponder what wonderful life lessons I could glean from such a wondrous aspect of nature.

On aspects of the interlinking limbs:

• We are stronger together than apart
• We need others to be stronger
• Others need us to be strong
• Being together, we share each others burdens
• To impact one limb, means impacting all of them (we feel what others feel)

On aspects of clearing the intertwined limbs:

• Have the right tools for every job
• Work systematically, one branch at a time eventually gets them all
• Timing matters
  – in this case, I timed for cooler parts of the day (not easy in 90 degree Summer days)
  – in this case, I avoided rainy and poor weather
  – they say it’s better to do limbs and such around early frost days (limbs more prone to easier cuts) but I didn’t want to wait
• Safety is important

Clearing the trail, as well as many endeavors in life … teaches patience, planning, preparation, and using the right tools and the right timing.

The last lesson …

I need to get outside more.