John and Cheryl had been married nearly ten years, but they had know each other since high school. First they were perfect strangers, then they were friends, then more than friends (wink, wink), then man and wife, and finally mother and father. Through it all they noticed changes in each other. Cheryl grew a little sterner and more assertive. Being a law enforcement officer will do that to you. John? Well John just got weirder, but that’s another story. They both got a little older – and the extra weight that usually goes along with it.

One day Cheryl noticed that John had a little more energy than she did. He always seemed ready to go, while she was asleep on her feet. She asked him what the secret was. He told her that it was all of the house and yard work that he diligently kept at. He told her that yard work in particular was an exercise program all to itself. The squatting and lifting providing the anaerobic exercise, and an increase in the pacing providing the aerobic exercise. Cheryl decided to give it a try. It was as if she had found her calling in life. Planting life in the yard was like giving birth to a child, and she was surrounded by her children. But this soon caused problems. There was not enough work to go around in their small yard, and John was resentful. Tensions grew until it found a release, and it wasn’t pretty. Arguing in front of the neighborhood over who was going to plant a new ficus tree, John yanked the tree from Cheryl’s grasp and tossed through the front window. Something needed to be done.

Little did they know, the solution was right down the road. John’s parents had a yard twice the size of John and Cheryl’s; and it was just begging for attention. John and Cheryl found their solution. This yard would prove to be more than enough work for the two of them, that is until Beth decided that she wanted in – but that’s another story.

The characters in this story are a work of fiction. Any similarities to any real persons, alive or dead, is purely coincidental.