My arrogant neighbor threatened to sue me if I didn’t get rid of my solar garden lights, and the next day, karma paid her back.
I’ve had challenging neighbors in the past, but none quite like Meredith. She was begging at my door after what looked like a trivial demand to take down my innocuous solar lights.I didn’t think karma existed until I went through what I’m going to describe to you. I had always felt that luck was not on my side, but things have changed in the last few days.I’m Cecelia, a forty-year-old single mother balancing work and personal obligations as the mother of Lily, the most amazing daughter, and a busy marketing manager at a downtown business. I’ll give you some background on her. Ten-year-old Lily is my greatest accomplishment.
She sees hues in the world that most adults have forgotten exist and is compassionate and sensitive. She’s the kind of child who, if she thought our elderly neighbor Mrs. Thompson “looked a little lonely today,” would bake cookies for her or leave little notes of gratitude for the mailman.Notwithstanding all the highs and lows I’ve experienced, I genuinely feel blessed to have her as a daughter. I don’t think I could have asked for a better one. To be honest, things haven’t always gone as planned.
About nine years ago, Lily’s father and I broke up, and I have been doing this on my own ever since. Trying to manage work and parenting Lily while overcoming the emotional and financial challenges that come with being a single mother hasn’t always been easy.However, my beautiful baby Lily has been the one person who has kept me sane the entire time. In the same way that I am her rock, she is mine. But that is a tale for an other occasion. I want to talk about something today that happened not too long ago and still leaves me shaking my head in shock.
We’ve been in this adorable little neighborhood for almost five years, and we both genuinely love life here.Although it’s simple, it feels comfortable and like home. In our neighborhood, people know one another, greet each other with waves from their cars, and exchange gardening advice on the weekends. This place has the nicest summers. There are constantly yard sales going on, kids riding their bikes down the street, and the scent of barbecues in the air. I adore this place, and so does Lily.I sit outside in the garden with Lily every evening, enjoying the soft flickering light from our solar lights that illuminate our little flower beds.
We worked together on a small project last spring to create those lights. Lily chose them all, adamant that our yard required some “fairy magic.” Since then, our garden has been a particular place for us to chat about her school day, her aspirations to become astronauts (which shift every other week), and everything else she’s thinking about.However, a few months ago, when Meredith moved in next door, everything started to change. Meredith is a character, that’s all. She is thirty-three years old, wears these exquisitely designed suits even on the weekends, and she always walks around in high heels as if she were going to consummate a deal for a million dollars.I’m not impressed by her driving a brand-new BMW and working in finance.
She also has this lovely garden with well-manicured hedges and nicely clipped roses. I believe a significant portion of her pay was spent on those pricey flowers for her garden.But how did she act? To put it mildly, Meredith isn’t exactly the kind neighbor. She is the kind of person who avoids social situations, is reticent to smile, and wouldn’t be caught dead striking up a conversation over the fence. Not to mention the day when she voiced her displeasure about the children playing too near to her yard. To be honest, I didn’t initially give her much thought. I accepted that she was just one of those individuals who preferred to be by themselves.However, one day she made the decision to take issue with my tiny solar lights. That’s where the actual narrative starts, my friends.
Meredith had been living with me for about a week when she started coming over every evening to complain about the solar lights in my garden. “They’re beaming into my bedroom window; they’re too bright.” “You have to get rid of them,” she would insist.I initially believed Meredith’s complaints would end, but they persisted. She would even discuss it with other neighbors in an attempt to mobilize them against my tiny garden lights. She would complain, “Those lights keep me up all night.” It occurred to me how ridiculous it was. Those lights were really not very bright! By midnight, the faint brightness they had faded. When she reappeared one evening, I made an effort to be reasonable.Meredith, the lights are powered by solar energy.
They lack brightness and are modest in size. Furthermore, they turn off automatically at midnight,” I said.She wouldn’t have it, though. “I’m not bothered. They must leave. The way Lily was impacted was the hardest part. Because those lights were our little endeavor, she loved them, and I could see the disappointment on my daughter’s face every time Meredith trampled over with her complaints. She was perplexed as to why our neighbor was furious, and
To be honest, neither did I.I had no intention of turning out the lights at that time. Why, after all, should I? But that was before Meredith came charging over with this snarky expression on her face. “Cecelia… She exclaimed, “I’ll get the authorities involved if you don’t remove these lights; they are a nuisance.”I was incensed and felt betrayed. However, I was against a scene, especially one that involved Lily.In the hopes that it might restore some serenity to our lives, I took a deep breath and made the decision to give in. I was digging lights out of the ground when Lily emerged later that night.
Her dark eyes raced from one light to another, “Mom, why are you taking them down?” she said. I crouched down next to her and hugged her.”Sweetheart, we’re just going to take the lights down for now because Meredith isn’t happy with them,” I stated. But trust me, we’ll soon provide much better ones. Perhaps we will discover some that resemble little stars. Lily nodded, but it was obvious she was unhappy. That night, we went to bed believing that was the end of it; little did we know how soon things would turn around.I was startled out of sleep the following morning by a loud knock on the front door. I stumbled downstairs, wondering why in the world there would be a commotion this early in the morning. I was shocked to see Meredith when I peered through the peephole.
However, this wasn’t the polished, well-groomed Meredith I knew. She appeared to be a whole different person. unkempt hair, lifeless complexion, and attire like pajamas.I opened the door, trying not to look too shocked. But before I had a chance to question her about it, she yelled, “What did you do?!?” My yard is destroyed, so immediately replace those solar lights! I blinked at her, startled beyond belief. Was this a joke of any kind? She had threatened to call the police if I didn’t turn off the lights just the day before, and now she was insisting that I turn them back on. What was happening?Meredith, what topic are you discussing? We removed them because you demanded, I answered, utterly perplexed. “It was an error,” she exclaimed. She went on to say that raccoons from the neighboring forest had entered her garden because the lights had been out the previous evening.
They enjoyed themselves immensely, chomping through everything they could find and smashing her pricey flowers and lovely plants.”Unable to take any action,” Meredith shook her head. “I was too afraid to confront them outside and drive them away. I did nothing but sit there and watch as they destroyed my lovely landscape. I listened, maintaining a bland expression as she babbled. I smirked and remarked, “I warned you that those lights served a purpose,” when she eventually paused.Tears filled Meredith’s eyes, and she felt like she would pass out. By now, she was virtually pleading. “Please turn on the lights once more. Could you also assist me with tidying up the debris in my yard?There was an underlying tone of entitlement, as if somehow I was still to blame for everything, even in her desperate situation.
She gave me the impression that I would do everything to assist her. But enough was enough for me. “I apologize, Meredith, but that’s not really my problem,” I answered, meeting her eyes directly. You expressed clearly that you were against those lights. Therefore, I advise you to hire an expert to take care of your yard.”However…” “I hope the mess gets sorted out soon, Meredith,” I smiled and interrupted her. “I hope you have a pleasant day.”I closed the door behind me, leaving her standing there. Meredith tried to rebuild her garden for several weeks, spending many hours and a modest fortune in the process. Lily and I, in the meantime, reinstalled our solar lights and added a few more for good measure. I learned from the entire event that karma truly does have a way of making things right. Meredith asked for the lights to be turned off, and she received precisely what she requested—plus a little bit more!
