I hired someone to mow my lawn.
Can I genuinely afford it? Maybe not, if we’re only looking at the amount of money coming in and going out. But I also have to consider what it frees me up to do. That time can be used to work, make money in other ways, or take care of something else that needs my attention. With everything happening in my life, I’m exhausted, and this little luxury might even buy me some time to think.
The harder part, honestly, is hiring someone to do something I know I can do myself. I’m independent. If I’m physically capable of doing something, my first instinct is that I should do it. Paying someone else can feel wasteful, or like I’m admitting that I can’t handle my own responsibilities. I came from a very do-it-yourself family. We never had help from a plumber, contractor, or definitely someone to mow the lawn. In my defense there, I mowed the lawn quite a bit for my parents growing up.
And I can mow the lawn, I’ve been doing it for 6 years. That isn’t really the question.
The question is whether mowing the lawn is the best use of my time and energy right now. Just because I can do something myself doesn’t mean I have to do everything myself.
Today was the first mow, and I have to say: seeing the lawn already done felt really good. It didn’t make me want to ignore the yard. It actually made me feel like I might have the energy to edge, pull some weeds, or work on other things outside.
When the biggest job was taken care of, the rest of the yard didn’t feel quite so overwhelming, or like it will take the entire day to make a difference.
So yes, hiring someone to mow the lawn is a luxury. It’s a small but necessary one. And for me, it’s also a form of self-care.
Maybe independence doesn’t have to mean doing everything alone. Maybe it can also mean knowing where my time and energy are most valuable and giving myself permission to get help with the rest. Now I’m off to work on more ways to up my bank account. Who knows, one day I might allow a cleaner to come into the house 🙂
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