On a recent Saturday morning, except for the squawk of birds, the sound of silence reigned. Blurry-eyed, I watched the gurgling Keurig coffee maker drip drip drip brew into my cup.

Suddenly, the calm was broken by the shrill of the doorbell. Who could it be at this semi-ungodly hour? I muttered. There ought to be a law barring solicitors from knocking at your door so early. As someone who pretends to be interested in PBS, I know this is illegal at Windsor Castle or the Taj Mahal.

Through my early morning fog, I spied two male physiques; slim, compact and a bit vertically challenged, although they would still tower over Danny DeVito. Were they campaigning for office? The midterms were still far off. Snake oil salesmen training in the junior division?

I considered both of them, looking professional in their deep green T-shirts cleverly arranged with the words Lawn and Order. And below it: Special Mowing Unit. An absolutely clever take on the longstanding NBC crime drama, “Law and Order.” The words form the slogan that accompanies the official name of the business: “Lawn Brothers.”

“Hi, I’m Jaxon Sclafani, and this is my brother, Alwyn Christensen,” one said. “Would you like your grass cut? We charge $20.”

Then a calm hush. A momentary blackout.

“Hey…weren’t you my substitute teacher at Blue Mountain Elementary?” Jaxon asked curiously, respectfully, professionally.

Busted! But, well, secretly glad to be noticed. I’ve had several “Jaxons” in my classes, but I remember this Jaxon as being an “old soul,” light years more mature than the fill-in “adult” stumbling to pronounce names while taking attendance.

Jaxon, who earns straight A’s, is the kind of student who listens first and listens with depth. And he will engage in mindful conversation only if he feels he has something of substance to say. Unlike a certain person in command who famously remarked, “Sorry losers and haters, but my I.Q. is one of the highest — and you all know it,” Jaxon has no need to boast.

Long story longer, Jaxon is quite the blossoming entrepreneur. His, um, cutting edge business, launched this spring, reflects the rising fifth grader’s commitment to reduce his carbon footprint.

“I have a battery operated mower,” he explained. “My weed wacker is also electric. My goal is to get a sit-down mower, which, new, runs about $2,000.” He’s not sure if they, too, are available in battery-powered versions.

At the end of their first day on the job, the brothers had cut five lawns in the neighborhood, punctuated by the roar of bulldozers plowing the earth and concrete mixers pouring foundations. Their “take home” pay came to $100. He turns most of his earnings over to his mom who deposits it in the bank. Jaxon also has his own credit card he uses to buy materials for the business.

Jaxon praised his “Nanna” for tutoring him on all things related to cutting a lawn the correct way. “She taught me how to do edges and patterns and she taught me about blade safety,” he recalled. “How to check the grass.”

Jaxon’s mom, Nina Scalfani, sitting next to him at the newly minted recreation center at Mountain Brook residential community, asserted that she was impressed by her son’s operating plan. “What I love about his business is there’s no overhead,” she said. Meanwhile, her daughter Minka, 7, is also busy making money over the summer, selling lemonade, bracelets and baked goods. “I had to pay for their supplies,” Nina reported. “But for the next round, they paid using the $75 Minka earned.

As for Jaxon, his endeavors reach far beyond his skill at grooming yards to the nines. During the past school year at Blue Mountain, he served on the student council. A few of his projects included raising money to resurface the blacktop and updating playground equipment. In that role, “I learned pretty well how to work with other people,” he said. He’s planning to run again in the coming school year.

Asked to share a bit of sound advice for others considering starting their own business, Jaxon’s thoughts were as plentiful as the millions of cells that live and thrive in a single blade of healthy grass. “I would say start out with what you want to do and then see if people will pay for that job you’re going to do,” he said.

It’s no secret that working under a blazing sun requires energy, To keep his strength at maximum capacity, he said his mother “scratches my boils and makes the best steak and chicken wings! She’s got a lot of energy. And she tells me to be smart about my money. I couldn’t ask for a better mom.”

It’s obvious that Jaxon possesses that secret sauce that stirs others into action. When it came time to hire Alwyn, Jaxon poured out the right words. “He said, `Let’s go! Get off your iPad.’ Jaxon’s not an iPad kid. He’d rather be out doing something.”

If the grass is always greener on the other side, you can be assured that Jaxon knows about it. “My first actual customer,” he enthused, “was my neighbor, Edison. I’ve mowed his lawn twice now.”

Trilled his affectionate and nurturing mom, “And he’s signed up for a weekly mow!”

Tony Glaros, originally from Washington, D.C., is a longtime reporter and former educator. He says living on the Front Range sparks euphoria.