Open Letter #2

dear White Trash Neighbor,

bravo!...since my last epistolary narration, the lawn has been mowed...i must admit, i had my doubts about the power of the pen when it came to our relationship...but now that i know you're listening, i'll go on...

i'm pleased that you finally entrusted little "jimmy" with the task of mowing the yard...

one hiccup, though, remains...and maybe this is me erroneously believing the rest of the world should think and act as i do...but you had him out there working on easter sunday...at 9:30pm...and that struck me as rather odd...in the south, most people consider easter a holy day...a reason for schools and government offices to close for days on end...since i often see you piling all five--or is it six?--kids into the dented van--the girls in ankle length cotton, little "jimmy" in his pleated slacks--and heading out every sunday, i made the assumption that you, too, found this day special...perhaps the "specialness" ends at sundown?...whatever the case, i couldn't help but notice little "jimmy" mowing in darkness, the only light cast on him from my own front porch...he seemed to be falling over the mower...a side-effect of sunrise worship?

as i turned out the lights inside my house and headed to bed, i listened for a moment to the drone and gurgle of the blade...it was already an hour past my own child's bedtime...she had to wake early the next morning for daycare...my husband and i had work...would little "jimmy" be getting any rest?

then i wondered at the value of cutting the yard in the dark...what life lesson was he was learning--aside from listening to your bossy neighbor?...that home maintenance should only be undertaken as a covert operation?

now that the grass has been hewn, i can clearly see the blocks holding up the truck in the yard...and perhaps you can finally get those tires you've been "waiting on" for over a year?...i can also clearly see the mattresses strewn about the grass...are you planning a night out? is this some sort of camping trip? i've not known many people to bring an entire chest of drawers on such an excursion, so i'd like to know--logistically speaking--what you have planned...since my home is only a few yards from where you've constructed a makeshift campfire, should i have the fire department on speed dial?

really, truthfully,

Neighbor Who Runs Inside When She Sees You Coming