When I was a young boy in Santa Cruz, California, I used to help my grandfather in the fields near his home. Although the land did not belong to him, it was not unusual in those days to barter labor with neighbors to work the soil so he could grow the vegetables he loved. In exchange, He would share the harvest with the neighbors. He grew corn, beans, peas, zucchini, cucumbers, and garlic. And no one could grow larger dahlias than my grandfather.
As I worked alongside him, he loved to tell me the story of Giuseppe (Joe) and his wife, who moved to a new farm with their three sons. As they were settling into the new community, a nearby farmer told Joe that there was gold in the dirt of his new property. Joe took this to mean there was actual gold in the land. He thought to himself, "I have three healthy sons; I will tell them about it." Indeed, he told his sons that gold could be found on their new property. Needless to say, his sons took charge of this personal enterprise right on their own land. They had visions of what they would do once they found gold, and each son had a different dream. Despite their youth, they adopted a quite professional approach to their gold digging.
They began in one corner with a certain width and kept going until they reached the property line. Once they hit the boundary, they would start another swath and move in the opposite direction. They began to realize that digging for gold was fun! This process continued for about six months, and they had yet to finish excavating the entire property.
