Holding Back the Wild

Why Preventative Care Is the Art of Living in Harmony With the Inevitable

When you really think about it, the work of a handyman isn’t just fixing leaky faucets or patching fences — it’s a quiet, ongoing negotiation with nature. The Earth has its own agenda: to reclaim, to break down, to turn every structure we build back into soil, water, plant life, and sky. And honestly, it’s hard to blame nature for that. It’s the natural order of things.

As humans, we’re in a constant, humble effort to hold back that inevitable return. Paint peels, wood rots, metal rusts, and gardens creep into walkways and fences. Left alone long enough, every carefully built thing would soften, crack, and dissolve back into the landscape.

My job — and the job of anyone who tends homes, gardens, and land — is to respectfully slow that process down. To work with nature rather than against it. It’s a balance between preservation and acceptance, knowing that one day, all of this will return to the earth, and that's exactly how it’s meant to be.

The Art of Preventative Care

One of the best ways to stay ahead of nature’s persistence is through a simple, rotating schedule of preventative maintenance. It doesn’t have to be overwhelming — just steady, seasonal awareness. Here are a few of the unsung heroes of home care:

• Seasonal gutter cleanouts — because water will always find the path of least resistance, usually into your basement if you’re not paying attention.

• Weatherproofing doors, windows, and siding — a fresh coat of paint or sealant isn’t just for looks; it’s armor against rain, wind, and sun.

• Checking and clearing drainage pathways — nature loves to test where water will go. You can either help guide it, or it will make its own plans.

• Roof inspections — moss, needles, and debris love to settle where you can’t see them, quietly undermining your roof’s lifespan.

• Trimming back trees and shrubs — lovely as they are, branches scraping against a house or growing too close to a roof will usher in rot, pests, and damage.

• Sealing wood fences and decks — untreated wood is an open invitation to moisture, fungus, and insects.

• Inspecting foundations and crawl spaces — small cracks or pooling water today can be tomorrow’s bigger problems.

A Humbling Perspective

At the heart of it, it’s good to remember: none of this is permanent. Not our homes, not our fences, not our carefully laid garden paths. They’re temporary gestures of human intention in a world where, eventually, everything returns to the earth.

And that’s not a grim thought — it’s a beautiful one. It reminds us to respect the natural world’s patience and persistence. To build and care for our homes as stewards, not conquerors. To mend what we can, weatherproof against the coming storms, and appreciate the wildflowers pushing through the cracks in the driveway.

In the end, it’s not about beating nature — it’s about dancing with it, for as long as we’re here.