In Talihina the mountains set the terms. Winding Stair rises south of town, the Talimena road climbs off into the pines, and the yards below hold the cool of the Kiamichi valley an hour longer than the highway does. Tim's Lawn Care mows on the slope and the flat alike, trimming around stone, cutting the edge along the walk, and taking up the cut so a lawn looks finished rather than merely shortened. Spring here arrives with dogwood and a green that comes up all at once; late summer asks for patience and a sharp blade. The reward is a yard sitting easy under the pines, tidy from the mailbox to the back fence.