A Wall Divides Feuding Neighbors — The Bulldozer They Woke Up To Changed It All

The Johnsons had recently relocated to a new neighborhood. A protracted disagreement arose over their shared lawn following the welcoming celebration hosted by their neighbors, the Summers family. But eventually, external enemies would compel them to unite for the common good.

The Summers family, made up of ten-year-old Tommy, his mother Judy, and his father, watched with interest from their porch as the new neighbors moved their belongings into the house next door.

With a nonchalant sip of her tea, Judy remarked, “The old Daniels’ house has finally been sold, huh?”

John said, “Yeah…looks like it.”

Judy questioned, “You think they are from the city?”

John grimaced and replied, “Must be. Look at those superfluously fancy bags. A bit much if you ask me.”

“Oh, Johnny. Always such a grouch. I like their bags,” Judy observed.

Tommy exclaimed excitedly, “Looks like there’s a kid there too. He looks like he’s my age.” Kevin, the other boy, and Tommy’s eyes briefly locked. They acknowledged one another with a quick nod.

Kevin’s father, Danny, called out to him, saying, “Kevin! Quit daydreaming and give your mom a hand with the remaining bags,” after catching Kevin watching the neighbors next door.

“Nonsense. They’re just being neighborly. Plus, I think this may be really good for Kevin. He may even find a friend in the boy next door. You know he struggled to make friends back in the city. This could be good for him.”

Kevin assisted Cindy, his mother, in bringing the packages inside. Danny glanced into the family’s porch via the kitchen window.

Danny sneered, “Looks like we got some nosy neighbors.”

“They seem nice. Perhaps we should introduce ourselves once we are settled in,” Cindy offered.

“Maybe… I just kind of think we left the city so we could have a little peace and quiet. Let’s not get too caught up in community politics, love?” Danny replied.

Cindy gave Danny a sidelong glance and said, “Politics, Danny? Relax…this is our new home. Our new community. We should embrace it. And I know how you get sometimes.”

“I know, my love. And I’m all for embracing it. All I’m saying is they seem a little intrusive,” Danny continued.

Kevin held up his hand to announce, “Hello! I’m in the room!” Both of his parents chuckled.

Pulling his son into the huddle, Danny said, “You’re mom’s right. This is a fresh start for all of us Johnsons. We should grab it by the horns and embrace it!” as he took in their new house.

A few days later, there was a knock on the Johnson family’s door. When Cindy answered, she found a group of neighbors standing on the porch, each holding baked goods or other food treats. Among them were Tommy, Judy, and John.

“Greetings there! We are the Summers family. These are the McCarthy, the Stevens, and the Lloyd family. We are all your new neighbors, and we just wanted to welcome you to the neighborhood,” Judy remarked with a warm smile.

Judy handed Cindy a casserole, to which Cindy exclaimed, “Oh, my goodness! That’s so thoughtful of you!” She then called out, “Danny! Kevin!” Moments later, both Danny and Kevin appeared, surprised to find a welcoming group gathered at their doorstep.

“Honey, our neighbors came with gifts,” Cindy stated to her spouse.

“Oh, why thank you! This is my lovely wife, Cindy, and our son, Kevin,” said Danny as he accepted the other presents. Once more, Tommy and Kevin smiled amiably and discreetly acknowledged one another.

“Great to meet you all. I’m John, and this is my wife, Judy, and son, Tommy. Seeing as our houses share a border, we thought it only fitting that we have a barbecue there to welcome you to the neighborhood and better acquaint ourselves with each other. Saturday afternoon. What do you think?” John said.

Danny remarked, “It seems like a great idea. Thank you, John.”

John said, “Okay, very well then. Guess we’ll see you there.”

“I guess you will. Once again, thanks,” Danny said.

Danny was getting ready for bed later that evening with Cindy. While Danny laid on the bed thinking deeply, Cindy cleansed her face in the restroom.

Cindy stated, “I told you the new neighbors would be nice,” as she was leaving the restroom.

Danny shot back, “Funny, I don’t remember you saying that.”

Cindy entered the room and joined Danny in bed. “Listen, all I’m saying is they aren’t as bad as you’d feared. I believe the word you used was…’intrusive,'” Cindy said.

“I don’t know about you, but bombarding us at our doorstep with a league of overcooked casseroles is a tiny bit intrusive. Just a bit,” Danny replied with a sly smile.

“Oh, wow! Is this really the man I married?! We are in suburbia, my love. That’s how things work here. And I really think it was sweet. The city can be so distant, cold, and guarded. I like this,” Cindy said, grinning hopeful.

Danny answered, “Yeah. Jokes aside, I like it too,” and then grimaced doubtfully. “What about that John fellow, though?” Danny continued.

Cindy said, “Oh, the Summers family. They’re nice,” without any thought.

“I guess. I’m just not sure about how he said, ‘Guess we’ll see you there.’ He didn’t give us much of a choice, did he?” Danny replied.

Laughing at her husband’s concern, Cindy exclaimed, “Danny, it was just a friendly invite.” “That’s enough for now. Let’s get some sleep. Goodnight, my love,” Cindy said, planting a kiss on her husband’s forehead.

With a “goodnight, darling,” he answered.

After a few days, the barbecue’s Saturday finally arrived. In the expansive grass area that abutted the Summers and Johnson residences, the family assembled the grill.

The Johnson and Summers families both did a fantastic job setting up the BBQ. To welcome their new neighbors, everyone in the neighborhood turned out.

Everything was going along just well. As Tommy and Kevin gushed about their favorite video games, they even discovered that they were now interacting more than just nodding acknowledgement to one another.

A dalmatian appeared out of nowhere and started digging holes in the yard as Tommy and Kevin were playing on the lawn and the adults were still joking about closer to the house. Kevin leaped to his father at the grill as soon as he heard the alarm.

“Dad! Dad!” exclaimed Kevin.

With concern, Danny enquired, “What’s the problem, champ?”

Kevin pointed to the dog and shouted, “Over there! There’s a dog in the yard!” Kevin was playing with the dog when Danny and Kevin suddenly ran towards it.

“My yard!!” Danny said, his anger boiling up. Danny barked, “Who’s dog is this?”

“She’s our dog, sir,” Tommy muttered, slightly surprised by Danny’s outburst. John suddenly materialized behind Danny.

John questioned, “Everything okay here?”

Danny pointed to a seemingly random hole in the yard and stated, “No, everything is not okay. Your dog is making a mess of my yard.”

“Sorry about that. I guess Suzie just has to get used to sharing the space, that’s all. This used to be her playing ground,” John remarked.

“Well, that’s good and all, but now it’s our yard. I’d appreciate it if Suzie understood that,” Danny said. Danny said, “C’mon, Kevin,” and he stormed off, with his reluctant son trailing behind him. Tommy and Kevin exchanged a melancholy glance as their amusement was interrupted.

When John and his wife got ready for bed later that day, they fluffed up the pillows with a sulk. Judy gave him a look as she tried to determine why he seemed to be in such a mood.

Judy finally said, “So, are you going to tell me what’s got you in such a mood?”

“That Danny…he’s a real piece of work, isn’t he? Telling us Suzie should find somewhere else as if he owns the place,” John added.

Judy sprang into bed and replied, “Well, technically, he does. It’s partially his property, too.”

“Yeah, but he didn’t have to be a jerk about it. It’s our property, too,” John said.

“Please, John. Don’t make a thing of this. Aside from the little incident with Suzie, it was an amazing barbecue. I like Cindy and her whole family. Who knows, you might even find a friend in John. Look at Tommy and Kevin. They seemed to get along very well,” Judy replied.

“Friends?!” John mockingly exclaimed. “I highly doubt it. We’ll be alright just as long as he knows his place.”

“Don’t overthink it, my dear,” Judy planted a kiss on her husband’s forehead. “Goodnight.”

A few days later, John discovers that one of the Johnson family’s vehicles has taken up some space on the Summers’ lot, and two of them are parked on the lawn. John went up to meet Danny as soon as he got out of one of the cars.

“Hey, Danny. Listen, you’re hogging up the space a little there. It’s a shared space, remember?” John said.

Danny replied smugly, “Yeah, I remember. Did you explain that to your dog?”

John questioned, perplexed, “Is that what this is about? You’re still upset about Suzie?”

Danny answered, “It’s about respect, John. Have a good day,” and turned to go.

Furious, John stormed back to his home. Who is this man supposing he is? John thought, Clearly, he has no idea who he is playing with.

The following day, John made the decision to take matters into his own hands and began constructing a wall to demarcate their respective plots. Despite Danny’s obvious threats to sue him and his outrage, John disregarded him and carried on erecting the wall.

Weeks passed, the wall grew taller and higher, and the heated rivalry between Danny and John also intensified. However, none of them was prepared to give in. Their children, who had lately become classmates and close friends, were forbidden from contact with each other and started to avoid one another.

John was startled out of sleep one morning by a tremendous boom coming from outside. He observed a bulldozer tearing down his wall as he peered out the window. As John bolted from the home, he noticed Danny leaning against the wall.

Before leaving, Mr. Cooper said, “Get your affairs in order, boys! Because your houses are next! Ready or not… Change is coming!”

John screamed, enraged, “Danny! Are you crazy?! Stop this immediately!”

Danny looked on in amazement as the bulldozer continued to rip down the wall. “Listen, I was honestly thinking of doing the same. But I guess I was about a month too late,” he added.

“Liar! I know this is your doing! Stop it, now!” John shouted.

Danny vowed, “John, I swear to you that it’s not me.”

John yelled, “You’re lying!”

Danny pushed himself in front of the bulldozer, fed up with John’s rants and accusations. “What’s going on here!?”

Just as the bulldozer came to a stop, an automobile unexpectedly drew up next it. Frustrated, the man in the fancy suit leaped out of the car and yelled at the bulldozer operator. “Who told you to stop! I don’t pay you to laze about! Get to work!”

Danny yelled at the man, “Excuse me! Just what do you think you’re doing?”

Startled, John asked, “Mr. Cooper?”

“What? You know this guy?” a perplexed Danny questioned.

John said Danny, “Yeah, he owns a chain of local stores.” John questioned Mr. Cooper, “What’s going on here?”

“Hi, John. Gentlemen, you are slowing down progress. But, if it helps get you out of my way, I’ll tell you. This will be the venue of my brand new store,” Mr. Cooper remarked with a smug grin.

John paused and glanced at Danny, rethinking his statement, “Are you insane? You can’t do that! This is my…” Then he went on, “This is our property!” with all of his passion. Danny nodded, recognizing their unity and John’s unexpected change of heart.

“This does not support it,” Mr. Cooper stated, passing John a document. John was joined by Danny as they read it aloud in amazement.

John was horrified and exclaimed, “This indicates that you are the property’s legitimate owner. This can’t be right.”

“It also says he’ll be bulldozing our houses next, John. This is ridiculous!” Danny added.

Mr. Cooper responded, “Well, you better believe it,” took the document, and got into his automobile. Speaking to the bulldozer driver, Mr. Cooper exclaimed, “And you! Tear this down!” Before leaving, Mr. Cooper said, “Get your affairs in order, boys! Because your houses are next! Ready or not… Change is coming!”

With serious concern, Danny said to John, “I know he’s some big-shot business owner around here, but can he really do that, John?”

“Those papers looked legit,” a disappointed John muttered. “I don’t know, Danny.”

“We can’t allow him to do that, John! Think about our families. What will I tell Kevin and Cindy? What will you tell Tommy and Judy?” Danny wept hysterically.

“I don’t know, man! People like Mr. Cooper make things happen! We don’t stand a chance,” John remarked, despondent.

“No… No… No, I don’t believe that. You make things happen, John. I’ve seen it. Remember how you rallied everyone for the barbecue? People respect you. Maybe we can convince them to help us,” Danny remarked. With a final “We can save our homes, John. C’mon! What do you say?” Danny extended his hand to shake hands. John paused.

John, please, for our families, Danny pleaded.

“For our families,” John firmly shook Danny’s hand and stated.

As soon as possible, John and Danny informed their neighbors of their predicament and mobilized the neighborhood. The entire town was encircling the bulldozer in protest within an hour, preventing any more work from being done. The bulldozer driver ran out of alternatives and gave Mr. Cooper a call.

The driver came off the bulldozer and said, “Sorry, boss. There’s a bunch of people here. They have me surrounded, and I can’t do anything. We’ll have to pick it up from where we left off tomorrow,” sparking a triumphant shout from the entire neighborhood. John and Danny gave each other a congrats on their triumph.

Later that day, Danny reported the incident to the police, and John called the community chair. Both the police and the community chair promised to look into the problem.

Mr. Cooper came back the following day, attempting to complete the task with the bulldozer. But the cops arrived not long after he arrived and took him into custody. As it happened, they had been looking into Mr. Cooper for some time.

Mr. Cooper had obtained bogus documentation to take over numerous properties, of which the Summers and Johnson homes were just a couple.

Danny said, “This is great!” as Mr. Cooper and the cops departed. Danny said, “We saved our homes, John!” with excitement.

John said, “Yes, we did, Danny!” with joy.

“Listen, I know we haven’t always seen eye-to-eye, but I believe there’s a way we can resolve this without any more unnecessary drama. How about we work together to resolve this issue,” Danny suggested.

“How so?” enquired John.

“Well, we can hire a surveyor to pinpoint the exact location of the boundary line and then share the cost of relocating the wall, if necessary,” Danny said.

John peered at the wall he had just finished building. He recalls how great the cookout had begun and how their neighbors had come together once more to defend their houses. He recalled the joy his wife and children felt upon becoming friends with the Johnsons. Then, at last, he experienced a revelation.

“I think I may have a better idea. Just please be patient and give me a little time, okay?” John asked gently.

Danny said, “Alright, John,” and they shook hands.

Danny awoke the following day to the sound of what sounded like construction going on outside once more. He hurried outdoors right away to see John working on something.

“What are you doing? I offered to solve everything peacefully and fairly!” Danny snapped.

John gently answered, “I know, Danny. Please be patient.”

Danny yelled, racing back home, “Patient?! There’s no getting through to you! I don’t have time for this right now, but you’ll hear from me after work!” John let out a long breath and carried on working, his eyes full with an unfazed smile.

Danny came home at the end of the day from work to find Tommy and Kevin swinging merrily on a playground on John’s side of the lawn. Beside the boisterous playground across from Danny’s section of the grass, there appeared to be an uneasy emptiness.

“It appears that you truly came up with a superior concept,” a startled Danny remarked as he walked up to John.

“Just have patience, I told you,” John remarked, grinning.

Kevin said, “Daddy! Look! Tommy’s dad built a playground!”

Danny said, “I see, my boy. You boys enjoying yourselves?”

Both Tommy and Kevin said, “Yeah!”

Danny turned to the boys and exclaimed, “Great stuff!” before returning to John. “Truce?” Danny asked while extending his hand.

“Truce,” John answered back. They shook hands and enjoyed seeing their kids run around.

The two families decided to split the yard area after that day. John and Danny even grew close to one another. On Danny’s side of the lawn, Danny and John constructed a large gazebo where they would have parties and cookouts for the entire neighborhood. With the remaining space, Judy and Cindy also decided to create a little flower garden.

What lessons may we draw from this tale?

You never know what can happen, therefore you need to get along with your neighbors. Had John and Danny persisted in their altercations, they would not have been able to deal with Mr. Cooper’s threat.

Set your ego aside and learn to prioritize what actually matters. John and Danny needed to learn to set aside their egos and prioritize their homes and families. They were even able to come out of the whole thing with a friendship once they put their disagreements aside.

Talk about this tale with your companions. It could motivate them and make their day better.