Contribute to Template

Push generic improvements from your private desk back to the public template remote using git worktrees for safe, isolated editing.

CRITICAL SECURITY WARNING

The template is a PUBLIC REPOSITORY. Pushing private data is a serious security and privacy breach.

BEFORE EVERY PUSH, VERIFY:

1. •No personal names - Replace your name with [USER_NAME]
2. •No file paths - Replace /home/yourname/ with [YOUR_PATH]
3. •No credentials - API keys, tokens, passwords
4. •No personal data - Goals, preferences, diary entries, schedules
5. •No contact info - Phone numbers, emails, addresses

If in doubt, DON'T PUSH. Ask the user first.

When to Use

Invoke /contribute-to-template when you have:

• •New skills that are generally useful (not personal workflows)
• •CLAUDE.md improvements (clarifications, bug fixes, better examples)
• •Documentation updates
• •Structural improvements to the Desk
• •New rules in .claude/rules/

What NEVER to Contribute

These directories are ALWAYS private - NEVER push them:

• •Preferences/ - Personal preferences, communication style
• •Goals/ - Personal goals and aspirations
• •Diary/ - Logs, notes, personal history
• •Responsibilities/ - Personal tasks and projects

These patterns are ALWAYS private - search and replace before pushing:

• •User's real name → [USER_NAME]
• •Specific paths → [YOUR_DESK_PATH], [REEVE_BOT_PATH]
• •Dates referencing personal events
• •Any API keys, tokens, or credentials
• •Phone numbers, email addresses, physical addresses
• •Names of friends, family, colleagues
• •Specific companies, projects, or employers

Workflow Using Git Worktrees

Git worktrees allow you to work on the template in a separate directory without affecting your main desk. This is especially important when:

• •Pulses are running and modifying your current desk
• •You want to test template changes in isolation
• •You need to carefully review what you're contributing

1. Set Up the Worktree (First Time)

# Ensure template remote is configured
git remote -v | grep template
# If not present: git remote add template git@github.com:YOUR_USERNAME/reeve-desk.git

# Fetch latest template
git fetch template

# Create a worktree for template contributions
git worktree add ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib template/master

This creates a separate checkout at ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib that tracks the template remote.

2. Review What's Different

# See commits in your desk that aren't in template
git fetch template
git log template/master..HEAD --oneline

For each commit, ask:

• •Is this generic (useful to any Reeve user)?
• •Does it contain personal information?
• •Is it a standalone improvement?

Good candidates:

• •Add context-engineering skill
• •Fix typo in CLAUDE.md pulse documentation
• •Improve emergency-response skill workflow
• •Add self-awareness documentation

Bad candidates:

• •Customize for wellness coaching
• •Add preference: morning workouts
• •Update Goals for Q1

3. Make Changes in the Worktree

Navigate to the worktree and make your changes there:

cd ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib

# Option A: Copy files from your desk (then genericize)
cp ~/reeve_desk/.claude/skills/new-skill/SKILL.md .claude/skills/new-skill/

# Option B: Cherry-pick specific commits
git cherry-pick <commit-hash>

# Option C: Manually create/edit files
# Edit directly in this directory

4. Genericize the Changes

Before committing, ensure changes are generic:

1. •

   Replace user-specific values with placeholders:

   • •[USER_NAME] instead of actual name
   • •[YOUR_DESK_PATH] instead of actual path
   • •[THEIR_DEFINITION_OF_SUCCESS] instead of specific goals
2. •

   Add onboarding comments where customization is needed:

   markdown

   <!--
   ONBOARDING: Customize this section for your specific setup.
   Example: "Help [NAME] achieve career success while maintaining health"
   -->
   

3. •

   Remove personal context:

   • •Specific dates, names, places
   • •References to personal habits or routines
   • •Timezone-specific information

5. Commit and Push from Worktree

cd ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib

# Check what you're about to commit
git status
git diff

# Stage and commit
git add .
git commit -m "Add [feature]: description of what it does"

# Push to template (worktree tracks template/master, so push to origin)
git push origin HEAD:master

6. Verify and Clean Up

# Verify template has the changes
git log --oneline -5

# Return to your main desk
cd ~/reeve_desk

# Optionally remove the worktree when done
# git worktree remove ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib

Safety Checks (MANDATORY BEFORE EVERY PUSH)

Run this verification before pushing to template:

cd ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib

# 1. Check for personal names (replace YOUR_NAME with actual name)
grep -ri "YOUR_NAME" . --include="*.md" | grep -v ".git"

# 2. Check for personal paths
grep -ri "/home/" . --include="*.md" | grep -v ".git" | grep -v "\[YOUR"

# 3. Check for potential API keys/secrets
grep -riE "(api_key|token|password|secret)" . --include="*.md" | grep -v ".git"

# 4. Review all staged changes line by line
git diff --staged

# 5. Verify no private directories are included
git status | grep -E "(Preferences|Goals|Diary|Responsibilities)/"

If ANY of these commands return results, STOP and fix before pushing.

Checklist:

• • No personal names (replaced with [USER_NAME])
• • No personal paths (replaced with [YOUR_DESK_PATH])
• • No API keys, tokens, or credentials
• • No Diary/, Goals/, Preferences/, Responsibilities/ files
• • All changes reviewed with git diff --staged
• • Commit message doesn't contain personal info

Quick Reference

# List worktrees
git worktree list

# Create worktree from template
git worktree add ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib template/master

# Remove worktree
git worktree remove ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib

# Prune stale worktree references
git worktree prune

# Reset worktree to latest template (for fresh start)
cd ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib
git fetch origin
git reset --hard origin/master

Why Worktrees?

Example Session

User: /contribute-to-template

Reeve: Let me set up a worktree for safe contribution.

[Runs: git worktree list]
[If no template worktree exists: git worktree add ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib template/master]

Checking what's available to contribute...
[Runs: git fetch template && git log template/master..HEAD --oneline]

Found 12 commits ahead of template. Analyzing...

**Template-worthy:**
1. `abc123` - Add context-engineering skill
2. `def456` - Fix pulse documentation typo
3. `ghi789` - Add self-awareness documentation

**Personal (skip):**
- `jkl012` - Customize for wellness coaching
- `mno345` - Add morning workout preference

I'll copy the relevant files to the worktree and genericize them.

[Makes changes in ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib]

Ready to commit:
- `.claude/skills/context-engineering/SKILL.md`
- `.claude/rules/self-awareness.md`
- `CLAUDE.md` (with [USER_NAME] placeholders)

Push these to template?

Remotes Reference

In your main desk: origin = private, template = public In the worktree: origin = public template (because it was created from template/master)

Always push personal changes to your main desk's origin, generic improvements through the worktree.

Maintaining the Worktree

If you contribute frequently:

• •Keep the worktree around (~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib)
• •Periodically fetch and reset: cd ~/workspace/reeve-desk-template-contrib && git fetch origin && git reset --hard origin/master
• •This ensures you're always starting from the latest template state

Version: 2.0 (Worktree Edition) Last Updated: 2026-02-04