THE GREEN, GREEN GRASS

With apologies to Erma Bombeck--it is true that the grass is always greener on the other side of the- septic tank, also on the other side of the fence. Always and invariably, it is greener. It is also just as difficult to cut. The one on the other side of the tank and/or the fence didn't get that lush and verdant field simply by looking at the patch and praying that all would be well. He and/or she toiled long and hard and at a great deal of physical and financial cost to produce something that makes us green with envy; pun intended.

There is not very much in this life that comes easy or cheap, except perhaps envy. We see what another has, think it is so much better than what we have, and desire it. That would not be so bad if our dreams stopped right there. But sometimes they don't. And they are dreams, you see. Because once we start fantasizing about what the other has, we start living in a dream world. We quite easily forget all that is entailed in making our dream come true; or we mesmerize ourself into believing that it'll all be easy. All I have to do is toss out some seed, sprinkle a little of lime and fertilizer, add some water (preferably of the rain variety) and, presto!, the green, green grass of our dreams.

We really know it doesn't work that way. We really know that if we want our neighbor's lawn, we'll have to work just as long and just as hard as our neighbor; maybe even longer and harder. And if that is what we really and truly want, we ought to go for it. Give it our all. But we must not forget: the end results will demand more, not less, of us.

What we also forget, what we fail to realize while we are gazing over our fence in envy, is that our own yard might not be all that bad. All too often envy not only hides the reality of what we desire but it also prevents us from seeing how good what we already have really is. That green grass is so deceptive. And we fall for it. Readily, easily, almost willingly. While we are watching our neighbor toil and labor to make what he has the object of our dreams, our own grass gets out of hand with weeds and dandelions and whatever. And that's too bad because what we had really was so good.

For each of us there is a greener grass, a greener pasture. Sometimes it only remains in the realm of our dreams. Sometimes we start to make our dreams come true and discover that they'll take more work, more sacrifices, than we're willing to give or make. Sometimes, as we gaze longingly over the fence, we look down at our feet and feel just how comfortable we are, how good what we have is. And so we smile and go back to cutting our own grass.

We’ll sweat, of course. We might even cuss a little. But when the job is done, we'll sit back and enjoy the beauty of the green. But if we listen closely, we'll probably hear all those blades making noise. They're laughing at us. They're growing. Our work is never done, is it?

It’s all right to dream, to be green, to want, to be envious at times. But at the same time, we cannot allow ourselves to overlook what we already have. It is probably better than what we see over the fence. And if it isn't, it can be if we want it to be.