Unpopular One Man’s Milkweed

As a business owner you operate trying to please everyone. Most of the time it works, but there are times when someone nitpicks such minutia you realize that universal pleasure is never going to be universal. Being an absolute perfectionist, I had one of those tell-tale interactions where I realized killing myself to make things great, is only great for some of the people, not all of them. Let me tell you about one man’s milkweed.

This past season, the fescue wildflowers areas were out of control. Due to the wet winter and spring, the plant matter went crazy. You saw it everywhere, not just here. In certain places it grew “weedier” than I would like, and my goal is to return it to the controlled uniform glory it once was. Foxtail, crabgrass and MILKWEED were met with a plan for total eradication.  We knew it would take time. In my mind I knew all the golfers would love me. It would look better and play better. That’s what it’s all about, right?

One Man’s Milkweed Turnabout

One Sunday afternoon an old timer and his grandson approached the counter. He was happy and thankful in disposition. The little boy held grandpa in high regard.  He told us how pleased he was that we were NOT destroying the milkweed on the golf course, but actually we were.

He told us that milkweed was a life source for the monarch butterfly, and he was so impressed that I was not destroying the milkweed and in turn the butterfly habitat. Of course, I said nothing. I accepted the praise as if I had just won the Nobel Prize. He left, and I stood there shaking my head. It never occurred to me that killing milkweed might have made someone mad. If you ever get mad at something here remember, one man’s milkweed might be another man’s monarch. I’ll never be able to please everyone, so I just please myself.