In the middle of this heat our landlord has ordered the renovation of our balconies (tiny as they are).
The workers, though kind and willing, are not really organised though, hopping from one balcony to the next. Right now four balconies out of six are being worked on at the same time.
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To be honest, I had to 'talk' to myself several times aleady not to complain about this, and today one of my neighbours, an 80 year old lady, started complaining - first to me, then to one of the workers.
I am glad I was able to listen to her without starting to complain myself or belitteling her problems. At the beginning I thought, well, she usually is at home all the time, while I have to juggle appointments and reschedule them. But fortunately I could understand that the uncertainty for her seems to be almost overwhelming, her quiet day is being interrupted, that probably is scary.
Not too long ago I may have not taken the time to try to see it through her eyes. Glad I am getting better at this - and thanks to all of you who are giving me good examples and remind me that it is important and worth every little effort to grow in this area.
The workers, though kind and willing, are not really organised though, hopping from one balcony to the next. Right now four balconies out of six are being worked on at the same time.
To be honest, I had to 'talk' to myself several times aleady not to complain about this, and today one of my neighbours, an 80 year old lady, started complaining - first to me, then to one of the workers.I am glad I was able to listen to her without starting to complain myself or belitteling her problems. At the beginning I thought, well, she usually is at home all the time, while I have to juggle appointments and reschedule them. But fortunately I could understand that the uncertainty for her seems to be almost overwhelming, her quiet day is being interrupted, that probably is scary.
Not too long ago I may have not taken the time to try to see it through her eyes. Glad I am getting better at this - and thanks to all of you who are giving me good examples and remind me that it is important and worth every little effort to grow in this area.
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- Posted by balou
- Aug 21, 2020
- Comments (8)
Readers Comments
pluto178 wrote: I realise work needs to be done that is urgent but renovations should not be included in that and I think you and your neighbours had every right to say NO not right now thanks. X
Christine88 wrote: That's great that you saw it that way. Not to complain. By seeing her complain, you could see that it's not all that great. It's funny, we complain about bad road conditions and say 'when are they going to repair them?' They come to repair them and then we complain about the one lane closure, etc.. Just take it as it comes.
Nugget wrote: We have so much road construction right now and it is often inconvenient but then I think about the end result and the hard work in high heat that workers are doing to ensure we have safe roads and settle my inpatience down!
gardengal10 wrote: In the "advice column" in our paper today, someone said that they were getting impatient with people complaining. The columnist offered that during these difficult times even a short time offering just a listening ear can make a big difference in people's lives. thanks for being that listening ear.
NoOnesNME wrote: Way to go Balou! I'm leaning that being a good listener while someone is complaining is just about as therapeutic as venting your self. Glad you offered your venting time, we'll be here for you when it's your turn to vent.
mindyjourney wrote: We we step back and “see†from another’s perspective, the larger picture we actually perceive. Thank you for doing and hoping balconies are renovated completely soon!
Mish wrote: We all help each other learn & grow here. We are truly blessed.
OlivierChhu wrote: Thank you for your story, Balou. Stories like that make us grow, everyone together :)
