A number of thoughts came to mind as I was mowing the lawn the other night. In the back lot east of the house, there is a spot in the yard that has these little weeds that never get too tall and have little yellow buds on them. The name of the weed I don't remember, but I remember them from my youth as a weed often seen near the chicken house at my grandparents home. We always called them chicken weeds, or at least I did, and when mowed they give of a very pungent odor.
I thought back to some old photos I came across showing an elderly member of the family mowing his yard with an old reel push mower, wearing what seemed to me to be a very warm wool suit. I guess maybe in those days mowing was a social event, much like dinner. Do you remember the days when men would never go to town without dressing for the occasion? Today we find the wearing of suits, to be a staple of funerals, insurance salesmen and the occasional businessman. Even the old rule of suit wearing to church has begun to go away, as church's look to welcome younger members with "come as you are" Sundays. Believe me folks, most day's you don't want me to "come as I am" so I take pride in dressing for Sunday services.
Maybe old suits are going the way of men's hats. Honestly how many men do you see wearing something other than a baseball cap these days? How stylish people looked in the 1940's when men's hats, real hats, were all the rage. Although I probably won't be the first one to attempt to rekindle the men wearing find fedora craze, I do appreciate anyone who still wears one with pride. The boy has a favorite hat at Grandma's that he wears around with a dishtowel "cape" tacked around his neck. He calls it his "Inspector hat". Maybe rather than wearing a suit to mow the lawn we all should take this one step further and find a few of those old hats, at the Goodwill and wear them while mowing our lawns? Might not become the next huge Iowa fashion trend, but, I bet we'll put a smile on the face of anyone who catches us doing it.
See you next week..Remember, we're all in this together.