An Elderly Man’s Neighbor Blocked His Driveway With Cinder Blocks, So He Taught Him An Expensive Lesson

Neighbors can spice up life at home or make it a living hell. Living with friendly neighbors can be exciting and disgusting in equal measure. Depending on what type of personalities your neighbor may have, staying close to amazing friends is exciting.

When a man relocated from an unknown location to settle in Osceola, Florida, the neighbors never cared about what could unfold after that. It never took long before reality dawned on them that the new person in the neighborhood is such a menace. In this case, Oliver Lynch, an old retiree, had to contend with the new reality of staying near a stubborn neighbor.

The 79 years old Florida resident had stayed in Osceola for over 25 years. In this regard, the old man used to enjoy a cordial relationship with other neighbors. Though Oliver had a calm temper and would hardly argue with anyone, he wasn’t easily whipped around.

Though most people believe calm tempered individuals don’t indulge in confrontation, get provoked beyond limit may force them to take certain actions that may not be exciting. Having lived in the neighborhood for a couple of years, Oliver knew he had to fight back to have his way.

During the interview, Lynch stated, ’I have less energy left in me for fighting, I hate people who try to whip me around. ’These are statements from an aging man who won’t like to get provoked. Though such situations are unavoidable, Oliver would always avoid confrontation and create peace with his neighbors.

One day, Lynch was surprised to come back home to find cinder blocks placed on his driveway. Though Lynch took this for granted, hell broke loose when his neighbor claimed that the driveway was an empty piece of land he could use to do what he wanted.

Before Lynch could question and settle the neighbor’s claims, the situation went out of hand since the neighbor opted to go ahead and cement cinder blocks on the driveway. It was geared towards ensuring Lynch fails to remove them even if he wanted to.

Lynch had lived in the community for over 25 years and never came across such a stubborn neighbor. He was forced to come to terms with the new revelation of tolerating a difficult neighbor that had just joined them.

The strange turn of events sent Lynch back to the drawing board. With cinder blocks already cemented on the runaway, Lynch had little to do to resolve the disagreement.

Lynch was surprised about his neighbor’s actions. He wondered why a staunch Christian would exhibit such a strange attitude. Lynch believed that a serious Christian would be hypocritical but mind his actions.

With the situating getting out of hand, Lynch became worried about the next course of action. To try salving the situation, Lynch opted to seek help from the county office. The bottom line, he knew it isn’t going to be an easy battle.

Desperate for a solution, Lynch continued pulling different strings. He later opted to involve the media to bring to attention the events surrounding the simmering impasse between him and his new neighbor.

After the media broke the news to the public, neighbors got surprised about the turn of events. They hardly expected to see such type of behavior from a person perceived to be a staunch Christian. It portrayed Lynch’s neighbor in a bad light, contrary to the thought that serious Christians care about others. His bad attitude came to the limelight throwing the community into the discussion on whether he deserves the respect he’s given by society based on his perceived dedication to serve in the higher ranks of the church.

The entire community wondered why the new neighbor could hardly settle issues with the neighbor amicably to avoid unnecessary confrontation. Ideally, a friendly coexistence and amicable resolution of disputes have been a top priority in the community. The turn of events cast a dark shadow on the prevailing peaceful coexistence that the community had enjoyed for an extended period. The bad attitude showcased by the new neighbor was a wake-up call for other neighbors to understand how they will handle this new person in the area.

Though Lynch staged a spirited fight against his neighbor, including getting backing from other community members, his plea was never respected. He kept on wondering why his complaints are never acted upon despite raising concerns now and then. This experience made him feel ignored in all his efforts to ensure other people respect their neighbor’s properties.

After back and forth trying to find an amicable solution, Lynch made a milestone by getting an opportunity to meet his neighbor to iron out the issues he had raised. The determination to stop the neighbor from blocking his driveway remained Lynch’s top priority throughout the entire process. Though he ended up getting to his neighbor to discuss his grievances, he knew the fight wouldn’t be easy from the beginning. Regular media indulgence seems to have rattled the neighbor allowing room for talks to resolve the impasse.

Lynch quickly grabbed the opportunity to substantiate to the neighbor that the piece of land under which the driveway seats belongs to him. He pieced together all the facts and evidence within his disposal and justified to his neighbor why he needs to stop encroaching. The strategy was perfect, and everything appeared, leading to a final resolution. At least for now, the neighbor accepted the facts presented to him. What else could the neighbor have done?

Though Lynch complained to them now and then, they never took him seriously nor made an effort to support him launch a complaint. He had to think about various options to find a solution. Regardless of his age, he still won the battle. Having such neighbors can make one’s life a living hell.

The new neighbor later admitted that he regretted his actions and never acted that way out of ignorance. After explaining why he behaved that way, Lynch noted that the neighbor acknowledged that he was wrong and that the confrontation was unnecessary.

Depending on the magnitude of fall out between neighbors, the resulting factor breeds hatred that may be difficult to settle. Neighbors had to bring the two together to help them reconcile to learn how to cope with each other.

It is paramount for the two neighbors to put their differences aside and become friends. Living together for the longest time may not be easy if the two aren’t able to establish a good relationship. Happy neighbors are easy to get along with each other, making it easier to collaborate on various community issues.

Lynch’s story indicates that, at times, support from the community, proper communication, and collaboration are essential to resolve issues that may crop up. If not handled properly, such problems are likely to escalate, create tension, and even in extreme circumstances, individuals end up harming each other.

Though we may not understand Lynch and the neighbor’s current relationship, the moral lesson learned from this story is that we should learn to approach situations soberly without causing trouble.

The virtue of forgiveness is critical in reconciliation. How Lynch acted afterward is essential to ensure the issue is fully resolved to avoid grudges and protracted blame game that may re-emerge and cause more trouble. Lynch never became boastful after fixing the problem but instead focused on forgiveness and reconciliation.