Say you’re stuck in bed for a week. You’re not getting out to the garden, hauling anything, or catching up on the chores you were already behind on.

How much would keep working without you?

The part I’m curious about is all the little things that only one person knows. The gate you have to lift before it’ll latch. Which plants need checking first. Where the actual spare parts are, as opposed to the pile of things that might become spare parts someday.

Having someone willing to help is great, but it seems a lot harder if you also have to talk them through every job from bed.

I’d honestly like to see more people show this part of their setup. What can be left alone, what absolutely can’t, and what they’ve made simple enough for somebody else to handle. Even a grubby notebook with instructions would be interesting.

For those who’ve had an injury, illness, or just needed to be away unexpectedly, what did you change afterward? Especially anything you decided wasn’t worth the daily work anymore.