What does "and it seems to me like my mother's life has been shelved for new business." mean?

Jing-mei attended the Joy Luck Club in her mother's place..... in honor of her mother. She believed that the others would talk about her mother..... share stories, discuss their friendships. None-the-less, the meeting was not what she expected, and the experience left her feeling as if new business (in the meeting) had usurped her mother's memory and life.