Today was particularly important for me as it was a huge lesson in action and reaction. I have to say I’m not particularly proud of my action and reaction but I understand where it stems from. Yep, I slipped from trying to be more patient. Guess fatigue played a huge part in my behavior. Our neighborhood has gone through a change in the last 5 or 6 years where older homeowners have died and their homes have been sold to people who do not live in the homes. They quickly renovate them to give them street appeal and then make them a rental property. That should not be a problem except that some of the tenants who move in have no vested interest in the neighborhood.
For whatever reason they move in knowing that they will be there only for a short period of time or have a number of “room mates” to pay for the expenses. Hence what happens is that different people inhabit the home at different times. One of these is the home next door to me. This home had been built by a man who took great pride in where he was living. He built his home in 1940 when the world was a different place. He lived there with his family until he had to be placed in another type of home. His distant relatives sold the house to an “investor” who remodeled it and tried to quickly turn it over for a profit. Then the market went soft and the house didn’t sell. Hence the parade of tenants that have come and gone in a home that once had spirit. Now it appears to be a fancy apartment building.
After having worked a week of nights I looked forward to finally having a break. Not to be had. The home next door became a location for numerous bands to set up and play outside as if they were performing at the Hollywood Bowl. It would have been ok if the quality had been Hollywood Bowl material. Sadly, it wasn’t. So a nice, mostly quiet residential street became the venue for a bad rock concert.
Here is where my action and reaction comes to light. Maybe it’s just me in my old fashion, proverbial way but a note letting the neighbors know would have maybe soften the effect. However, to set up shop with no notice seems to me, well, selfish. And I guess I got annoyed not so much because I was tired or because it seemed like we were going to listen whether we liked it or not but because the world now seems to be renting to tenants that don’t seem to be aware of just good manners.
I won’t elaborate on all of the events that have been happening in the world recently as we are well versed to all of it from all sides but it seems deep down I reacted to things that would not be such a big deal if it only happened on a small scale like my neighborhood. Today’s event was just a reminder of how I need to stop before I react and put my actions into perspective. I need to realize that everyone and everything is not going to go my way. But I don’t want to lose sight that for me I still have to be aware of being sensitive to good manners and respect for my neighbors, next door to me and in the world. In reality, they played for only a couple of hours and were gone. I reacted from a number of emotions least of them from the loud, bad music. I don’t want to believe that good fences make good neighbors because we have some wonderful, kind and generous neighbors who love their homes and whom I love and cherish.
Tomorrow maybe I’ll bring the musicians over a pie.