New Guy . . .

We have a large yard with pretty cool landscaping and a large residential pool. It all requires attention and maintenance. It includes two water wells and sprinkler systems, and a 40′ x 60′ shop. I actually need a full-time guy looking after it all, but that is rather expensive, so I do some of it myself and try to get by with a part-time guy. The really difficult time is in March and April when our lovely oak trees shed their leaves and every one of them ends up in the pool. That is also the time when I upgrade the landscaping and do plant replacements as needed, and rework the beds. The Sprinkler systems always needs a tune-up in the spring as heads go bad over the winter months, or a gopher chews through a wire. Sometimes I have to hire a couple of extra guys to get it all done in a timely manner.

I have a difficult time finding a guy who is dependable, honest, and willing to work for a fair wage. I have had far too much of guys taking my tools and equipment. I even had one idiot who took my rods and reels off of the boat (which is locked up in the shop) and took them to the pawn shop. That same dude was notorious from stealing gas from the boat (it has a 50-gallon fuel tank) and using it in his old junker. He took rods and reels that cost $300 each to the pawn shop and got enough for a six pack!

These guys come and go. Many of them have a drinking problem and that is why they can’t hold on to a regular job. Some of them ride bicycles because they have lost their driver’s license (DWI). I try to help these misguided souls who have lost their way. I try to make sure they have food to eat (I cook much of it and serve them on my back patio). I talk with them and try to get them to think about life and our accountability to the Lord. Most of the time I think it is pointless, but sometimes a guy from the past will drop by and say thank you and tell me about something that stuck with him. So I just continue on.

This spring I ran through a half dozen of these rascals . . . that may well have been the worst group I have ever encountered. One of them was the nephew of an old friend, now deceased. I had high hopes for him, but soon discovered that his drinking has seriously damaged his health and severely limited his ability to work (diabetes). I was willing to allow him to work in his reduced capacity until he told me that he wanted to be paid $15.00 per hour. I told him where he could catch the bus. That dummy hasn’t had a job in five years. He gets by on food stamps and living with his elderly mom with her little Social Security check. Obviously he prefers that than earning his own keep.

I found a new guy, who I think may be someone I can grow into a good job with the company. He is about 23, has a young wife who has a pretty good job. They are buying a nice frame house and they have three little girls. This dude is pretty smart and learns quickly. He is a hard worker and goes at a pretty good pace. He seems really good, but tends to struggle with being able to do what he says, in a time-frame he laid out. An example: he says he is going to his house to have lunch and will return in an hour, yet he may be gone for three hours. But to his credit he does finally return and finish what he was working on. I stress to him that the time he is here or away is not really important . . . the important things are that the plants be watered on schedule, the decks cleaned off, and the pool serviced on schedule.

I asked him yesterday afternoon, “What is it that only you can give you, and no one can ever take from you?” He said he did not know. I told him the answer is Honor. No one can give me honor, except myself, nor can anyone ever steal my honor. He thought about it for a few minutes and grinned and said, “I really like that!”

Perhaps . . . we shall see! I hope so. He sure has a sweet little family.

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