The Lawn Mower

"Why won't this thing start?" I yell aloud. Another hard pull on the cord and the small engine spins with no intention of running. Another pull and nothing, I let the cord handle slip from my hand and watch as it retracts to its place on top of the engine. Straightening up while maintaining my glare of frustration at the little engine of my power mower I feel the sun beating down on my neck and the sweat running down my back. Trying to figure out what to do next my attention is distracted by the sound of a car door being shut on the street behind me, ignoring it I continue to focus on the power mower laying before me refusing to cooperate. "Al," I hear my name coming from somewhere behind me, giving up the evil eye focus on the little machine I follow the sound of the voice. "Hi dad," I return my forlorn look to the power mower.

Feeling dad's presence behind me, "trouble son?" "Won't start, and I don't know why," my short answer. "It ran perfect two weeks ago and now it won't run at all," I continue my tale of woe at which point we're both standing over the object of my frustration. As dad bends down reaching for the handle of the pull cord he asks the obvious, "got gas in it right?' "Trying to get on my good side dad," I ask sarcastically? "Of course it's got gas, the first thing I checked," I continue in my defense. Dad's first pull renders the same results as my previous attempts, nothing. Two more pulls and still the engine fails him. "Ah, let's get it into the garage, it's to hot out here under the sun," dad offers. I respond to his request, "good idea dad, see if we can figure it out."

Grabbing the mower by the handle I begin pulling the dead machine toward the garage with dad bringing up the rear. "When was the last time you changed the spark plug, did you check that?" Dad offers his limited knowledge and his years of experience. Arriving at the entrance of the garages' opened door I turn to face him," I'm not sure, maybe two years ago, maybe last year," I shrug my shoulders, "can't remember." "Well," his face beams with satisfaction, assuming he's right, "that's probably the answer." Standing at the mower looking down at it with a scorn fastened permanently to my face, "I'll have to go buy one," I answer in a perturbed voice. "We'll check this one first and confirm whether a new spark plug is needed, go get a wrench and we'll pull it to make sure." I turn and leave dad standing at the mower walking to the little bench in the back of the garage containing a haphazard assortment of tools.

Riffling through a small box sitting on the bench the object of my need presents itself. Being a medical assistant at the local hospital my interest in things mechanical are low on my list of priorities. Wrench in hand I retrace my steps to dad and the defunct mower, "here dad, you do the honor's, take the plug out for me." My father, his skills gained by years of experience, takes the wrench, bends down and begins removing the spark plug. "I remember a time when me and your grandfather had a push mower, no motor, just people power, me to be exact." Dad filling in the silent spots between him and I while wrenching the plug from the engine. "Yea,,, those were the good old days, I remember like it was only yesterday." Oh no, here it comes, I think to myself as I watch dad in his tasks at hand. THE STORIES, I've heard them a million times, walking through knee deep snow to school, ten below zero and on and on, spare me dad. "Yea dad, it must have been rough, in your time." I offer out loud while thinking that if all his stories were true he wouldn't have lived and married mom and had me, but what can you do, listen and appreciate the help he offers, for free.

"There's your problem son," my attention grabbed by the sound of his voice, "the spark plug, the end is burned off where the spark jumps to fire the gas." Dad smiles with the accomplishment of his diagnosis. "Okay," I answer, starring down at him with the offending part in his hand, "let's go get one and then I can get the grass cut before it gets any hotter." "I'll let Lynne know we're going to the hardware store and be right back, or is there any place you have to go?" "No son, not that I can think of off the top of my head." Dad walks toward his car and I leave the garage through the door to the house. "Lynne,,,, Lynne," a second time since there was no response to the first call. "Yes dear, I'm in the kitchen, I didn't hear the lawn mower running is there a problem?"

Making my way to the kitchen following the source of the voice, "Yea it needs a new spark plug, by the way dad is here and we're going to the hardware store to get one, we'll be back shortly." "When you get back have dad stop in and say hi." "Will do dear, got to go, dad is waiting in the car." Not wanting to make dad wait I pick up a little speed walking through the house, pulling open the front door I spot dad sitting in his already running car, I'm coming dad I think to myself, pulling the door closed behind me I begin my jog across the still uncut front yard and pull open the car door. Dad glances at me as I position myself in the passenger seat across from him, "ready to go son," he says with a smile. "Yep, I want to get the grass cut today, it's supposed to be even hotter tomorrow." As we pull away from the curb, "don't worry son, no problem, it'll be running and the grass cut before dark today." I enjoy dad's confidence at times, the thought runs through my head.

The drive to the hardware store takes only a few minutes, traffic is light for a Saturday. "Yea son, I was just thinking," dad began while starring through the windshield, negotiating traffic, "times have really changed." I turn my head to face dad and try to head him off with a short disinterested answer, "yea, for the better dad, I would hate to try to cut the grass with a push mower today," referring to his previous statement in the garage. "Well it was there and we had to do it, no choice," dad flashes a look at me that says he had it rough. Our destination reached, dad pulls into the parking lot and parks the car.

Shutting off the car engine he sits still and stares at the huge store for a minute, "in my day...." he starts. I immediately open my door and beat a hasty retreat to the store, "dad, let's get going, it isn't getting any cooler out, I've got to get the grass cut." While walking to the hulking building I look at dad following in defeat, "well son I was only saying, you know, I'm not inferring anything." "I know dad but I want to stay focused on what needs to be done now, your stories have a tendency to side track what is at hand."

"You brought the old spark plug with right dad?" "No, no I didn't, I thought you picked it up," dad says with a straight face. I stare at him hard for a second and a smile breaks out over his serious face. "Yes son, I got it," he laughs and then pulls the part in question from his pocket. "Where would the lawn mower parts be in here?" dad asks sarcastically referring to the size of the store, "big box store, boy they got that right." "Dad this is your domain, you ought to feel right at home in here, you should know where all this stuff is,"

I answer as we walk up and down the massive aisles of the store. Dad feigns ignorance all in the excuse of wandering up and down the aisles fascinated by all that is offered.

Dad's sixth sense leads us to what we are looking for, he claims, I know better, he has been in here a hundred times before and won't admit it. He still seeks out the small mom and pop stores claiming they are the backbone of our economy.

Me, I'm a one stop shopper, the bigger the store the better the chance I have at getting what I want and leaving, hardware stores, not for me. The upside for having dad stop over, sometimes his timing is perfect helping me over the tough spots and solving problems that I have no interest in, or limited ability at tackling. The downside, a history lesson, the history of his past. Standing back, watching him, his eyes aglow in the store, the tools, the various parts and fixtures he's in seventh heaven, I guess I just don't understand the fascination. "Here you go, this is what we need," dad shows me the spark plug. "Okay, great, I'm glad they had what we needed." "You can't be serious son, in this store, they've got everything." I look around as he is talking trying to imagine what everything is in the line of hardware and what they wouldn't have to fill our needs. "Hey son, how about we check out the push mower's, see if they got any for sale, I thought you were for green living?" "No dad, I don't think so," my emphatic answer. Following dad to the checkout lanes his head bobbing in all directions, trying to take in all that is in sight, I laugh to myself, "careful dad, you're liable to wind up with whiplash, he briefly looks at me and smiles, "it's great isn't it son?" "Yea dad, great." a slightly sarcastic smile on my face follows.

The replacement part paid for we leave the store, dad's attention focused on the part and the sales receipt as we walk to the car, "boy, they really know how to soak you, why I remember when this only cost a fraction of what they charge today." My look at dad tells him that I don't care what we paid for the part, the important thing is we got what we need. The drive home and another history lesson expected from dad on the parts price but silence, the entire trip, he must be busy in his memories, I chuckle to myself at the possibilities of his mind. Pulling into the driveway dad shuts off the car and quickly gets out, a gleam in his eye the part in his hand in anticipation of conquering the obstinate engine. "Have you ever had the blade sharpened on this thing?" dad looks in my direction while installing the spark plug.

"No, it's only about three years old, I don't ever remember running over anything that would ruin the blade." "We ought to look at it before we get started again, only take a minute, do you have a file in you conglomeration of tools over there?" dad pointing to the little bench and the pile of tools on top. "I doubt it," I answer, "nothing you could use for sharpening the blade." "I'll check my trunk, maybe I'll have something I can use." "And if not dad, let me guess, another trip to the hardware store," dad lets out a little laugh, finishing the spark plug and lifting the mower a little to check the condition of the blade. "Nope son," he says, "you're in good shape, the blade still looks good." I notice a little disappointment in his voice in the anticipated trip that is not now necessary. "Okay, let's shove it outside and give it a try," dad looking at the mower and then the yard. "Hope it works dad, I want to get the yard done, it feels like it's getting hotter.

Standing in the yard, the mower at our feet, we look at each other, "it's your mower Al give her a try." "You're the one who fixed it, you can have the honor's." I fire back. "That's right son, I fixed it, now you get to try it. That statement didn't make sense to me but I answer. "okay, okay dad I'll try it." Reaching for the throttle, I set it to the start position and cast a weary eye to the pull cord, I hope it starts I think to myself, what if, follows. The pull cord handle in hand I give one hard tug, the motor spins and cough's once, then nothing. Dad looks at me, "well that's encouraging, it didn't even do that before, try it again." I look down at the mower again with the handle in my hand, another hard pull, the motor spins and starts to run, a few seconds pass, the motor dies.

"You got the choke set boy, let me see, no you don't see hear, that's why it won't stay running." "I glance down and watch dad set the choke, "I've done that ever other time that I used the mower dad, it slipped my mind." "That's okay, now try it, it should run."
"One more time I give a good hard tug on the pull starter and the motor spins to life, yea dad," in my excitement, "we got a winner, sounds good to," I holler at dad over the roar of the engine. He smiles at me and points to the yard, "have at it son, you're in command."

Out of the corner of my eye I notice dad taking to the porch, the front door opening and Lynne stepping out alongside him and smiling. I throttle the small engine back and let the mower sit in its place. Walking to the front porch I notice that Lynne and dad are talking and pointing to the running mower. "Dad got the mower running for me Lynne," I say to her with a smile on my face once I get to the porch. "Yea," she answer's in response, "I see that, did you think to thank him for it?" "I was so excited that I forgot," I answer with a frown. I immediately turn to dad and thank him and ask if he would like to volunteer to finish cutting the lawn. "No," Lynne jumps in before dad gets a word out, "he's coming in the house with me where it's cool and have a lemonade, now get to it, you know what has to be done," as she glances across the yard and smiles. As I trod off to the waiting lawn mower, I notice Lynne lead dad into the house and the waiting lemonade.