Monday, April 4, 2011

Stepping Stones

Who knew that there was so much planning
needed to take place before laying stepping stones?
Not me, but then I'm married to an engineer
who is a perfectionist and does such careful work.

I walked out my pace for the path and he did too.
We discovered that my eight steps equal his seven.
So he measured the gait between them accordingly,
then had to dig under them to make the stones level.

Me, I probably would have just placed them-then
filled around them with pebbles, but that wouldn't do
for someone who is more particular and precise.
There are many ways of approaching tasks I've found.

Some like me are fast and furious, get it done and
move on. Others like my husband are careful and
complete. I'd much rather have him build a house
than me. I'd throw together a shack, and it'd be done.

How like the different ways we live our lives is this?
The creative spontaneous get it done quickly type
vs. the more methodical thorough scientific style
It takes both kinds to make things work and progress.

The finished project from planning to selecting the stones
is almost completed and it saved us many hundreds of dollars
by doing it yourself compared to an expensive landscaper
who wouldn't have done it as nicely. The path is now done.