Mourning

Today I am mourning the loss of our 3 date trees.  When I went outside to pick some ripe dates about an hour ago (as I've been doing everyday), all three trees had their date bunches cut off.  Apparently, the gardeners did this and they didn't bother asking permission.  They cut down all the dates in our compound, including the dates at my friends house.  A month ago, she told the gardeners not to do anything with her date bunches because she wanted them for herself.  She's now pretty sure they didn't understand her even though they said "okay".  We're not sure what they do with them, but I'm guessing they sell them as a side income.  Frustrating.  :-(