Living near others often requires making sacrifices to maintain harmonious relationships with your neighbors. Being considerate—whether by keeping noise levels down, being mindful of shared spaces, or avoiding activities that may disturb those around you—is a crucial part of community living. Small acts of politeness can help foster a positive and respectful environment for everyone.
This consideration can enhance everyone’s living experience and build a sense of community. Being a good neighbor contributes to a supportive atmosphere that benefits everyone in the long run. While I won’t claim that being a good neighbor is always easy, especially if your neighbors have a sense of entitlement, it’s essential to choose your battles wisely. Sometimes, it’s better to “lose” in situations where you won’t gain anything, even if you technically have the right to assert your position. This is a lesson that the original poster (OP) of this story seems to have missed.
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Source: Reddit
Making sure you don’t make a mess of your neighbour’s yard is always a good idea.
OP inherited a house from his dad a few years ago, and it came with a guava tree.
OP and his wife decided to sell the guava by making it into different items so they could make an extra buck on the side.
Some of the fruits would always fall into their neighbour’s yard, so OP decided to install a net to stop that from happening.
The neighbour wasn’t too happy when they realised they weren’t going to get any more fruits after OP’s wife explained it to them.
Via Reddit
Things only escalated from there, as the neighbours didn’t like that the OP was so worried about a few fruits.
The neighbor also thought OP was being selfish, as his granddad used to let them have the fruits that would fall on their side of the yard.
OP mentioned that the neighbors could buy the fruits off of them if they wanted and that the tree was on their property, so the neighbors have no right.
This has caused a rift between the neighbors, and, unfortunately, the neighbors don’t greet them whenever they come across each other.
We also got an update explaining that the reason they are selling the fruit is because they need to pay an upcoming medical bill.
The neighbour also only wanted the whole fruit that fell on their side of the property after all.
Via Reddit
Okay, technically, the OP isn’t in the wrong. After all, it’s their tree, and they can do whatever they want with the fruit. I have to admit that the neighbors are acting a bit entitled. However, that doesn’t mean the OP didn’t contribute to the situation. It wouldn’t have cost them much to share a few fruits with the neighbors; sometimes, it’s better to do so for the sake of keeping the peace.
I remember having a garden with guava and lemon trees, and I would regularly share the fruits with our neighbors, so it feels like the OP is creating unnecessary drama.
People had differing opinions in the comments.
Most people agree that the OP isn’t technically wrong.
However, you have to pick your battles.
Thus, it would have been a better idea to propose a compromise.
Via Reddit
It seemed very petty to a lot of the commenters.
It really isn’t very neighbourly.
Does it really matter if it is just a few fruits?
I have to agree that the neighbour came off as a tiny bit entitled.
Some people were also worried about the birds that could get harmed by the net.
