Every October, there is autumn cleaning going on everywhere. The parks are getting their final trim of the year and people are tidying up what is left of the summer from their gardens. Now that the temperature has dropped and nature’s extreme growing power has slowed down, it really feels quite satisfying to clean up around you knowing that apart from some leaves that will undoubtedly fall down, there will be no new vegetation to take care of for many months. So the last week I have cut our grass, washed our entrance and deck, and picked the weeds from around the house.
Then Sunday it was the yearly neighborhood cleanup day. Eight in the morning my son and I met our neighbors on the street outside. On the program stood sweeping the street, cutting down bamboo trees and removing any debris left behind. My wife was away on a business trip so she could not join, but our son worked for two. He wanted to help and talk to everyone and I felt that my son’s presence and energy added greatly to this morning becoming a joyful act of neighborly cooperation. As a thank you he got two ice popsicles, and that really made his day!
