When I started my work for American Lawn & Landscape in June of 2019, I had no idea that this will become an epic journey of learning and growing. Something more than just digging holes or moving decorative rock. Something more than connecting pipes or spreading mulch. For the past nine months now, I’ve had quite a few days coming home from work and scratching my head, both figuratively and literally, and saying to myself, “Wow, what a day! I learned at least five new things today that I didn’t know before!”
All this learning and growing into a new career or job would go to waste if it’s not shared, so here we are. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome to your reading stage… (insert drum roll here!)… (more drum roll…)… (more drum roll…) – (ok, ok… enough with the drums!)…
THE LANDSCAPE APPRENTICE
Nasko D. Lazarov & his K9 landscaper, Murry
Each week, with my best intentions, camera in my pocket, and my old-fashioned Moleskine® notebook in hand, I will share tidbits from my learning journey of being a… landscaper apprentice. Lessons learned, insights and tricks, common knowledge that’s shuffled under piles of mulch and weed barrier, practical things that friends and customers could use. And all this, hoping that the readers of this blog will learn something new, pass it along, or just have a good laugh.
Lesson #1
Lesson #1 came from a short conversation I had with my daughter. At the end of a full and busy 11-hour-long day, all dusty and sweaty, my daughter looked at me and asked me a question that I will remember for the rest of my life. “Any regrets, Daddy?”
You see, for the past 26 years of my professional career, I got to do all kinds of exciting things. Most all of them were in air-conditioned office space, behind a desk, working with computer, or working with people. Sure, there was the 27.5% traveling time each year, traversing this country or other countries. Sure, there were the staff meetings and board meetings but all in all but at the end of the day my hands were not covered with dirt. The last time I had to wear boots every day was when I was in the army!
My daughter’s question stopped me in my tracks. Standing in the middle of the parking lot, holding my backpack and my two extra t-shirts that I soaked from sweating that day (yes, we had a few 90F+ days in September!), I had an immediate answer, “No, Ma’am, no regrets!”
My lesson about landscaping that first week of hard work, right after Labor Day weekend had to do a lot more with my heart and perspective. Not so much if my hands were covered with dirt or my boots plastered with mud. Regrets are just like that. Regrets cover our souls like mud and over time, if we are not careful to examine them and get rid of them, they become heavy burdens that were never meant to be part of our life journey.
If you carry regrets from your past, get rid of them. Scratch their mud off your heart and soul. Move on. Move forward. Forgive, forget, learn and move on. Life is a lot easier when you don’t live with regrets from the past. If you need help with that, I can find you a good mud scraper. Just let me know.
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in The Landscape Apprentice blog represent the personal views and opinions of the author of the blog and do not represent an official policy or position of American Lawn & Landscape and its owners.
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