Aug
15

Whirlwind Week And Weekend

The start of a new week – and a fresh perspective! How’s your Monday going so far? Our family’s still unwinding from last week…

Last week was a whirlwind here at the Low household! My Hubby went out of town for work, so I did my best to hold down the fort with my Sweetie and Buddy. I was featured on Mama’s Little Nestwork, a wonderful network of bloggers – so I was busy getting a feature post ready.

Over the weekend, our church hosted two awesome Christian recording artists! I got to help out!! Singer / Songwriter Larissa Lam and Rapper / Actor Only Won came to our neck of the woods to perform a Praise Night concert on Friday night. Then on Saturday, Larissa gave a worship workshop (Simple Rules for Effective Worship). She did some hands-on work with our church’s musicians which uncovered some key areas we needed to improve on. It was great! They’re both amazing!  Passionate for God, trendy and very REAL.  Easy to talk to, down-to-earth, and definitely relational.  Larissa has contributed so much already at a young age – including writing music for Oprah Winfrey, a song for the video game Dance Dance Revolution, being a TV host, among many other accomplishments.  Only Won is the first bilingual Asian-American Hip-Hop artist and also a professional actor who has appeared in films such as The Pursuit of Happyness, Hulk, and The Matrix.  Larissa and Only Won are married, they’re such a cute couple.

So yes, I had a busy weekend – in the midst of it, Hubby had to go out of town thankfully just for one of the days because he had a funeral service to come back for.

I could not have done this without the help of my sweet mom, who was kind enough to watch our kids overnight so I could attend the Praise concert and worship workshop!  An uncomfortable situation happened as I was helping her put my son’s car seat in, we had one of her car doors open.

A car was wanting to take the parking spot next to us, and the 2 ladies spoke to my mom with a rude attitude.  Long story short, after they parked, one of them opened their door hard and banged into my mom’s car.  Not once, but twice.  Hard.  My kids and I were inside the car and felt the impact.  They denied it and the other lady told my mom there were already so many dents on my mom’s car, what’s another one?  I could not believe my ears!  Where’s the common courtesy?

My mom told them she’s fine even with the dent, she just wanted to let them know they had dented her car.  I got out of the car to talk to the ladies, but they walked away briskly claiming they were in a rush…but what do you think?  Even if they’re in a rush, does that mean they can treat others rudely – especially when they had made a mistake?  We could have pressed charges but my mom said the dent was no big deal…to her Mercedes Benz.  She just wanted to let them know they had actually in fact banged into her car.  Kudos to my mom for handling the situation so well!  I know it’s because she has God’s love in her heart that she was okay with it – but not without standing her ground.  My mom is a tough lady too!  And I was just ruffled because no one should disrespect my mama like that!

One of the songs that Only Won did reminded me of why some people hurt others.  They may be preoccupied with trying to protect themselves.  As a people, it’s easy to forget about others when we’re too hyper-focused on what we need.  So that perspective helped me to deal with feeling miffed at those 2 ladies who were rude to my mom.

Has anything similar happened to you before?  How did you handle it?  And…in the midst of crazy busyness, how do you keep your sanity?

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  • CassiopeiaChats

    I was thinking about your question and was surprised to realize that I would probably react differently if it happened to me or my mother. Like you said – you didn't want anyone disrespecting your mama. I probably would say more to them for banging her car than my own! (Please don't tell my husband!)

  • Eastlyn

    Good morning, Jinnia. Sounds like you did have a whirlwind week and weekend. I'll have to find out more about Larissa and Only Won. They sound like what the world needs more of: real people sharing God with others in a very real, easy-going way. I hate that your mom had the encounter with the rude ladies (dare I even call them ladies?). Two trite but applicable sayings come to mind: Patience is a virtue (those women could have waited patiently for your mom to finish buckling the carseat or found another parking spot); and common courtesy (like common sense) isn't COMMON. That is very unfortunate. I applaud your mother for her Christian attitude toward the situation. I probably would have had to make myself ask God to bless those women in their ignorance and disregard for others' feelings and property to keep from wanting to “bless them out” in a totally different way! LOL Hope your week is off to a great start. -Eastlyn http://eastlynandcompany.blogspot.com

  • tvs take

    Jinnia, great thoughtful post! Living where I live I see people being rude (not quite like your situation) at least once a week. All I can keep thinking is they are unhappy but they should not effect my happiness. Sounds like your mom handled it very well. Hope your having a great day!

  • http://jcmfamily.blogspot.com casey

    oooo, my blood got a bit hot when I read about the rude ladies and vandalizing your car. That actually happened to me twice…California people can be SO horribly rude and disrespectful…I can say that because I lived there for 25 years. lol. The same thing happened to me where they denied that they had hit my car twice. I was floored!! I too kept my cool because I didn't know what else to do. Next time though, I will take down their license plate number and call the police and report it. There are often surveillance cameras in parking lots that can prove things and I would like that person to have to face a little music…the right way I guess. I feel for your mom!

    Sounds like an amazing night with the worship artists. How cool! I'll have to look them up now:).

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Isn't that interesting? That shows you'd stand up for your mom. I don't know what it is, maybe the protective instinct extending to her? Don't worry, I won't tell you husband, LOL.

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Good morning Eastlyn. Yes, Larissa and Only Won are impacting so many lives because of their real-ness and beautiful faith. Thanks for feeling for my mom. Yes, patience was definitely needed – the “ladies” actually had the choice of another parking spot if they turned their head to the left. That's unfortunate that courtesy isn't common. You're a sweetheart for keeping yourself from wanting to “bless them out” in a totally different way! LOL. I actually felt that way. I had to keep my cool and then calm down later – whispering silent prayers for sure.

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    TV, you see rudeness at least once a week? Is that kind of like dealing with chronic pain? I'm sorry you have to see that so often, but sounds like you have a good way of not letting their unhappiness affect yours.

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Thanks Casey for feeling for us. My blood did get hot when they were doing that to my mama! That happened to you twice? And they denied it twice?! You know, people in California are in a rush so often they end up doing silly car-related things that hurt others! Good thing you kept your cool and you're prepared for if that kind of thing happens again. Hope it doesn't though, it's no fun…

  • Tvs Take

    It could be the desert heat that affects peoples kindness scale. While I'm not perfect I just sort of give a little ha and walk away. Like the common cold, you can see their unhappiness a mile away and its contagious. Happy Monday!

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Good for you for walking away from that. Looks like you've gotten good at spotting the symptoms! I'm curious to know if it's as hot as Arizona where you are. Happy Monday to you too!

  • Mamaslittlechick

    Jinnia your mom is a good woman! I would have been very upset with what happened and would have wanted to say something. But your mom handled it like we all should learn to do and be. It can be hard to take these life lessons and really work on ourselves and how we handle it. I would have been stressed and I am sure would have said something. I commend your mom for being the kind woman that she is. I hope you have a great week Jinnia!

    Mama Hen

  • http://www.imafulltimemummy.com/ I'm a full-time mummy

    Hey Jinnia!

    Oh wow! I'm glad your mum is OK. The sad thing is people see you're unhurt and they assumed its just a small matter let's not make a big brouhaha out of it and let's go on with our busy life when in fact they did not realised that they are lucky this time round no one is hurt! I think it's right for your mum to stand her ground and let them know their mistakes!

    Btw, thanks for dropping by earlier and leaving your feedback. I've checked around the Google for freecycle in Malaysia sites… nope… nothing yet… sigh… Thanks for the tips though!

  • Eastlyn

    Thanks for stopping by my blog, Jinnia. I always appreciate visitors and feedback. I rec'd your email about the act of kindness. I clicked on the link, but only a blank screen came up. The address reads http://cards.JinniaLow.com. I will try again, but please tell me if there is another way to reach the site. Thanks, Eastlyn

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Hey Eastlyn, I just sent you an email with another link you can use. Let me know if you're still not able to access it. Thanks!

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Yes she is, thank you Mama Hen. I was upset and started to say something to the ladies but they walked away briskly saying they're in a rush. Thanks for commending my mom – she was a great example to me of how to handle it. I'm also glad she didn't just take what they said, she told it to them like it was.

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Hey there, aw, sorry there's no freecycle in Malaysia. I sure hope you find what you're looking for! Did you get any other tips from others on the oven type?

    Yeah, we're thankful no one was hurt. Thanks for your perspective – it's true if someone were hurt, they would not have been so fortunate. If they encountered someone else who didn't give them grace, it would not have been pretty.

  • http://www.bethszimmerman.com Beth Zimmerman

    Your mom handled that with remarkable grace. I'm not sure I would have done as well!

  • Kimberly

    I don't really understand why or how people can be so ridiculous. I see it a lot on the roads around here. People just are not nice at times. I actually was on the opposite end of this situation a few years ago. I was with a friend, I had had an awful awful day…we were going to Starbucks and we were in deep conversation when I parked my car, got out accidentally bumping my car door into the car next to me. I didn't see anyone in the car…so we walked into Starbucks. As we did…a man jumped out of the car next to us and started yelling profanities at us for bumping into the car. He was wearing a neck brace and he chased us into the Starbucks. His girlfriend or wife was in the Starbucks and he made a huge scene about it. I asked him calmly to lower his voice and I would apologize for accidentally bumping into the car and said had I seen him in the car I would have apologized right away. He continued to scream at me and my friend. I finally said, “I can not apologize to you or talk rationally to you if you are going to act like a psycho BUT I am sorry this has upset you so much.” His girlfriend was in shock over the whole thing…I felt bad for her because anyone who has to deal with that I just have one word, “wow”. I think your mom sounds like a class act. We can not let everything get to us. We'd never keep our sanity in this crazy world! :-)

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    I'll tell her that, Beth. Thank you. I'm not sure I would either if I were alone!

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Your situation sounds ridiculous too. That man overreacted to say the least. You poor thing, you were having an awful day and this happens. I'd say you handled it well when you told him the facts, that you couldn't apologize if he kept yelling cuz he wasn't listening! You're right, we cannot let everything get to us!

  • Genny Heikka

    Jinnia,
    I’m so glad you left your link and joined in on Mom-Monday so I could read this. I think you make a great point about people trying to protect themselves. Your mom sure sounds like a neat lady, and it sounds like you had a great weekend. Congratulations for being featured! How wonderful! :)

  • http://jinnialow.com Jinnia

    Genny, thanks for stopping by and your kind words! I hope you have a great night!