Around the World in 88 Years -E Book - Arthur Burt

Fearing the face of man rather than the face ofGod…Shading our kitchen window were some big trees belonging tothe next door neighbor. I would have loved to cut those treesdown, but they weren’t mine to cut. One day, a man came to thedoor and asked if there were any trees in our yard that we wantedto have removed.“The only trees I’d like removed are my neighbor’s trees,” I toldhim.“Suppose I go next door and ask the lady. Would you pay forthem to be sawed down?” he asked.“With the greatest of pleasure,” I answered.He came back a few minutes later and reported, “The lady said ifyou pay for them, I can saw them down.” He removed the treesand I paid him for the job.The next night, the neighbor lady’s husband, a big German, camearound. He cursed me, calling me every name he could think of.“How dare you pay a man to cut my trees down!” he roared.“But... I told the man to ask permission from your wife,” I protested.As far as I could figure out, the wife gave the tree cutter permission,but when she saw how mad her husband was, she deniedshe had given permission, so I was the scapegoat. The neighbornever again spoke kindly to me.One day after that incident, my son Andrew was playing ball, and itflew into the neighbor’s yard. “Daddy, the ball went next door.”“Go around and ask for it politely,” I instructed him.“But you know what he is like,” Andrew said fearfully.“Listen,” I warned him. “Who do you fear most, the man nextdoor or your father? Now, go! He is probably not at home nowanyway.”Andrew obeyed and returned smiling, “I’ve got it, Dad.”148