The complainTs began a few months after Frances* moved into her new apartment. Last year, the health-care worker and her room-mate began receiving messages from the building’s concierge, passed on from the woman living in the unit below—they were too noisy, moved chairs too often and their guests were too rambunctious.
To Frances, the noises were part of everyday living. Her room-mate was an acknowledged klutz, who tended to drop things. Friends’ children occasionally visited and ran around. “It was frustrating,” says Frances. “Anything we did caused her to complain—and she owns and we rent, so if we couldn’t solve it, we assumed it was us who would have to move.”
To make matters worse, Frances and her neighbour couldn’t talk to each other. The key fobs for their building allowed access only to their own floors. Though they lived just metres apart, they had no way to reach out and bridge their divide—across which Frances could feel bad feelings swelling. “When you don’t know the person, you expect the worst,” says Frances. “We thought this neighbour hated us.”
Conflict is inevitable, and it often occurs between people who can’t just walk out of each other’s lives. Fortunately, there are many ways to navigate life’s disagreements, large and small, without boiling over.
Don’t make assumptions
Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra January 2020-utgaven av Reader's Digest India.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
BOOKS
Books review
STUDIO - Off Lamington Road by Gieve Patel
Oil on Canvas, 54 x 88 in
NEWS FROM THE WORLD OF MEDICINE
FOODS THAT FIGHT DEMENTIA
TO HELL AND BACK
The Darvaza crater in Turkmenistan is known as the Gates of Hell. I stood on its edge - and lived to tell the tale
THE SNAKE CHARMERS
Invasive Burmese pythons are squeezing the life out of Florida's vast Everglades. An unlikely sisterhood is taking them on
Sisterhood to Last a Lifetime
These college pals teach a master class in how to maintain a friendship for 50-plus years
...TO DIE ON A HOCKEY RINK
ONE MINUTE I WAS PLAYING IN MY BEER LEAGUE, THE NEXT I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL
Just Sit Tight
Broken, battered and trapped in a ravine for days, I desperate driver wonders, \"Will anyone find me?\"
Allow Me to Mansplain...
If there's one thing we know, it's this: We're a nation of know-it-alls
THE BITTER TRUTH ABOUT SUGAR (AND SUGAR SUBSTITUTES!)
It's no secret that we have a serious addiction. Here's how to cut back on the sweet stuff, once and for all.