Limb from limb.

I want to go kiss the new neighbors up the street. 

They are the third family to live in that house in the last ten years, and the first family to notice that the three trees that border the sidewalk have limbs that stretch out and prevent average-size persons from walking along. When Tralfaz was a puppy I could crouch like a little old hunchbacked man and get under them, but the last few years, when laden with leaves, the branches were as low as my chest. I would go in the street and let the dog continue underneath.

ouch ouch ouch

But no more! Those veritable saints have cut the limbs that overhung the sidewalk and set the sidewalk free! No more wooden chop across the throat! No more sticks in my eye! No more bugs getting on my head! Free passage and safety! 

It may have been civic-mindedness, but I think what made the difference here is that the dad cuts the grass on a riding mower. Those branches were so low they would sweep a guy right out of his seat, beer and all. The previous family had a service to do it, and who cares how the employees deal with such issues? None of the families had a dog, so no one was out walking around like a zombie, like me in the mornings. But the threat of being clotheslined by a hundred pounds of wood will get a homeowner's attention.

Whatever their reason for doing it, I salute them. Thank you, family, for your gift to the neighborhood! May no branches fall on your roof, no leaves land in your gutter, no squirrels crawl down your chimney, and may God bless you with a happy home.