Shawns Leaf and Lawn

About Shawns Leaf and Lawn

By the middle of October the big-leaf maples around Wait Park let go nearly all at once, and a single wet night will bury a lawn under leaves the size of dinner plates. Rain comes in off 99E in long soft sheets, the old depot sits dark against it, and every yard in town starts to disappear. Shawns Leaf and Lawn shows up for that stretch of the year — raking and blowing the leaves out, hauling them off, keeping the mowing going while the grass still wants to grow, edging the walks back to a clean line. There is a particular pleasure in stepping back at dusk on a cold afternoon and seeing green again where an hour before there was nothing but wet gold. A lawn that goes into the dark months breathing comes out of them in far better shape, and that is most of the point.