Spring in Grafton begins when the high water finally lets go and the bottoms turn a green you can almost hear. Sievers Lawn Service starts the season there, mowing lawns along the bluff roads and the flats near the landing, trimming close where fence posts and sycamore roots make a straight line hard to come by. Grass grows freely in valley soil, so the schedule tightens early and stays tight until the days shorten again. Edges get cut sharp, walks get blown clear, and the mower leaves a yard reading like a page. It is a plain kind of pride: the same lawns, every week, looking neat and even.