One disruptive hand ruins work made light by many

It was a perfect late-spring Saturday.

Several members of my large extended family gathered at my parents’ house to trim hedges and plant flowers. The sun was out, the skies were brilliant blue and the temperature was perfect for yardwork.

A wonderful old saying, “many hands make light work,” was certainly the case – though we really didn’t “work.”

We gathered as a family, laughin...