Rockford wakes up green. The Rock River pulls its fog off the water at first light, and by the time it lifts the mowers are already out, laying stripes across yards from the west side toward Kishwaukee Street. Christian's lawn and Landscape works the ordinary miracle of a lawn kept even — mowing, trimming, edging, and clearing the clippings so the curb line reads clean. In a city that calls itself the Forest City, shade is a fact of life, and grass under old maples and elms asks for patience. That patience is the work: a yard that looks cared for on a plain Tuesday, not only before company comes.