They are afraid of certain types of reptiles .They are afraid of dirt getting on their shoe .They are afraid of compost getting on their shoe .They are afraid of getting garden dirt on their shoe .
Why would the narrator jump back a bit ?
I think so far I have taken 6 wheelbarrow loads to the compost pile . On one of my trips I saw a snake sunning himself on a patch of dirt . It startled me for a minute but then I looked for him . I ' m sure he was just a garden snake .