There was a day when removing a tree stump was a major undertaking, and could take weeks of work. As I read the reports of the pioneers clearing farmland in the Midwest, I cannot imagine the price they paid to change a forest into farmland. I think I would have left them behind and just planted around them. In ten years they would rot away. But no, getting the stump out became a matter of principle and pride.
Sometimes we tackle projects for the same reason, that really could be simply bypassed. As I pulled out a stump this week with the help of John Deere, It was so heavy I had to load the front bucket to keep the wheels on the ground. I thought about what motivates us. Overcoming obstacles gives our lives meaning. Perhaps is it one of the things that makes us human.
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