Summer Speedos | Field Notes: Long Grass
Summer Speedos | Field Notes: Long Grass
What stories do we write about people before we know what is really going on?
In this Summer Speedos field note, Johan Heinrichs takes us on a walk past a lawn that hasn’t been cut, and into the quick assumptions we can make from the sidewalk.
Maybe the mower is broken. Maybe someone is away. Maybe they do not care. Or maybe there is more happening behind the scenes than we could ever know from the outside.
This short reflection is about more than long grass. It is about the way we fill in blanks about our neighbours, friends, families, and even strangers, often with very little information. It is a gentle reminder that dignity asks us to slow down before we simplify someone.
Judgment is fast. Compassion takes longer.
In this episode, Johan reflects on the mercy he hopes others will offer him when parts of his own life look confusing from the outside. And he invites listeners to ask one simple question before rushing to a conclusion:
What might I not know?
In this episode
Johan reflects on:
Why we make quick assumptions about visible things, like an uncut lawn
How judgment can turn one small detail into a whole story about someone
Why curiosity protects dignity
What mercy looks like in ordinary neighbourhood life
When to offer help, and when to simply give someone privacy
How asking better questions can turn judgment into compassion
A small step for this week
Pay attention to the moment your mind starts writing someone else’s story too quickly.
It might be a messy yard, a missed message, a sharp tone, a late arrival, or something else you only see from the outside.
Before deciding what it means, pause and ask:
What might I not know?
That one question may be where care begins.
Listen now
Listen to Summer Speedos | Field Notes: Long Grass and take a few minutes to practise slowing down, noticing with mercy, and letting your neighbours be more than one thing you saw on a walk.
About Neighbourly
Neighbourly is a CareImpact podcast about ordinary people showing extraordinary care. Through honest stories, reflective conversations, and practical takeaways, each episode invites listeners to notice the people around them and take one simple step toward neighbourly care.
Neighbourly is produced in partnership with CareCreatives Company, helping organizations clarify their message through branding, design, websites, and audio production for social good.
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Episode transcript Read the full transcript
Summer Speedos Introduction
Johan Heinrichs: Welcome to Summer Speedos from Neighbourly, our short in-between-season series while Shannon takes a break from her regular interviews. I'm Johan, the producer of the show. Some episodes are field notes recorded outside in ordinary places where care actually happens. Others are story field notes, more cinematic reflections that start with a story from history or real life. Either way, we're paying attention to the small, ordinary ways care, faith, courage, and community show up around us.
Johan Heinrichs: So grab a cold drink, or head out on that bike ride, walk, or hike. Enjoy this year's edition of Summer Speedos from Neighbourly.
The Lawn That Didn’t Get Cut
Johan Heinrichs: Hey, everyone. I was out on another walk today. We've got kids biking around, people walking, staring at me funny because I'm holding a microphone in the park. But you know what? You have to talk to someone. And sometimes you have to talk to something.
Johan Heinrichs: Anyway, on my walk today, I walked past this lawn that immediately made me feel very responsible and quite frankly, very judgmental, which is a terrible combination.
Johan Heinrichs: It wasn't a disaster. No wildlife preserve signs. No child lost in the grass, not that I know of. But it was long enough that my brain quietly opened up a case file. Why haven't they cut that? Is the mower broken? Are they away? Don't they care? Is anybody even living here?
When We Write the Story Too Quickly
Johan Heinrichs: And then, because my brain is efficient in all the wrong ways, it started filling in the story without permission.
Johan Heinrichs: That's the thing about a lawn. It can look like a yard issue, but it can also become a character assessment if you're not careful. And that's where I caught myself, because I had no idea what was actually going on.
Johan Heinrichs: Maybe someone was sick. Maybe someone was grieving. Maybe the person who used to cut it isn't there anymore. Maybe they're working long hours and the lawn has become the one thing they can't get to. Maybe the mower broke and the budget is already tight.
Johan Heinrichs: Or maybe they simply hate mowing the lawn, which, honestly, I can't fully understand. To me, it's a peaceful pastime. And it's fun because lawns are basically outdoor carpets.
Johan Heinrichs: But the point is, I don't know why the lawn was uncut. And I was still ready to write a story.
Dignity Slows Down Judgment
Johan Heinrichs: That feels important, because we do this with people all the time. We see one visible thing. A messy yard. A sharp tone. A missed message. A late arrival. Outside appearance. Maybe a child melting down in public. And we start narrating from the outside.
Johan Heinrichs: But dignity asks us to slow down before we simplify someone. Curiosity says, “There may be more going on here than what I can see from the sidewalk.” That sentence alone could save us from a lot of bad conclusions.
Johan Heinrichs: Judgment is fast. Compassion is much slower. Judgment fills in the blanks. Compassion leaves some blanks unfilled long enough to ask better questions.
Mercy Gets the Final Word
Johan Heinrichs: I need people to do that for me, too. There are parts of my life that probably look confusing from the outside. Things I meant to do but didn't. Things I delayed. Things I forgot. Things I overthought so long they somehow became historical artifacts.
Johan Heinrichs: I want people to be merciful with those gaps, which probably means I need to practise the same mercy when I see someone else's.
Johan Heinrichs: There's a line in Scripture about mercy over judgment. I like that because it doesn't say mercy ignores reality. It says mercy gets the final word.
Johan Heinrichs: Mercy doesn't mean the lawn does not matter. It means my first response does not have to be the verdict.
A Better Question
Johan Heinrichs: Maybe the neighbour with the long grass needs a hand. Maybe they need privacy. Maybe they need a text that says, “Hey, I'm doing my yard later. Want me to run the mower over to yours too?”
Johan Heinrichs: Or maybe they need nothing from me except the dignity of not being reduced to one thing I noticed on a walk.
Johan Heinrichs: So this week, pay attention to the place your mind writes the story too quickly. Maybe not the lawn. And when it does, pause long enough to ask, “What might I not know?”
Johan Heinrichs: That one question can turn judgment into compassion. And sometimes that is where care begins.
Johan Heinrichs: That's the field note. Keep noticing.
