In the days that followed, Lindsey withdrew from her usual outdoor routines. Her blinds stayed shut; her famously maintained rose bushes wilted from neglect. Jack and I carried on with our assignment, grateful the matter was handled professionally and without further conflict. Sometimes, when I saw her curtains shift slightly as we walked to the car, I wondered if she regretted her eagerness to enforce rules that didn’t require her involvement. Neighborhoods thrive on consideration, not surveillance, and perhaps she now understood the difference. In the end, the whole incident became an unexpected reminder: sometimes the greatest peace comes not from winning a battle, but from choosing not to create one in the first place.
