In an attempt to beautify the small awkward front yard on our awkward corner lot, we have planted climbing vines. We planted the vines a few years back, inviting them to weave and climb through a small red trellis. However, over time it outgrew its red home and began flopping over and grabbing onto things below or next to it rather than crawl upward as it was being trained to do.

Thus began my first exercise at detangling. Gently undoing a vine’s hold on its lattice is a slow process requiring far more patience than I have readily available. I may or may not have uttered a few curse (cuss, if you are from the South) words under my breath in the arduous process. Disentangling without critically damaging is a challenge.

From the vine’s perspective, my hands probably felt like those of a traitor or an enemy, ripping it from…