Saturday, September 29, 2012

Turf!

 
 
 
No, this isn't about football!
 
What it is about, is "Boundaries"!
 
A friend is leading a group of us through a study
of the book "Boundaries",
When to Say Yes, How to Say No to Take Control of Your Life
written by Dr. Henry Cloud and Dr. John Townsend.
She has given each of us a section of beautiful green turf
to keep in front of us during our group study
to remind us of the importance of protecting our own "turf".
 

 
 
On my morning walk with my neighbor last week
I spotted white fluffy looking blobs
scattered across the neighborhood duck pond.
Mentioning it to my walking partner,
she filled me in on what they were
and how they got there.
(Click to enlarge photo)
 
 
 
They were feathers!
She told me that the Canada Geese were trying to take over the swan's territory,
and there had been quite a fight as the swans ran them off protecting their "turf"!
 
 
According to Cloud and Townsend,
"Boundaries are personal property lines that define who you are and who you are not, and influence all areas of your life."
 
Although I often have trouble deciding which of life's interruptions
are "God's appointments" ,
and which are "boundary breakers",
I noticed these swans had no trouble claiming their boundaries!
I also noticed their pond was much cleaner, less cluttered,
and more peaceful then the other pond nearby
where most of the other water fowl resided.
 
I guess it's like that in my life as well.
Like the swan's pond,
my life can be less stressed and cluttered
...if I learn how and when to apply boundaries,
and to protect my "turf"!
 
 
Click on the this link for more Boundaries information,
or click on Rock4Today to see my most recent Name of God on Rocks!
 
 
 
 


11 comments:

Aritha V. said...

Thank you. This blog you've written special for me ;-)

Dominique Goh said...

I too agree that one should protect one's turf and live the best type of life possible.

VBR said...

beautiful post for letter T. the idea of 'boundary breakers' is very thought provoking.

Rocky Mountain Woman said...

That's something I need to learn also!

Unknown said...

What a wonderful T post! I love that you have learned to set boundaries!

noexcuses said...

Amazing post! I will definitely check out the book. How wonderful for you that you are studying it in a group. Beautiful pictures!

Unknown said...

Dear Esther, This is a very good post about protecting our space. I like to stay busy but sometimes I find my way into being too busy. I found your blog from the sheltering tree blog and I had to follow. We share the same name.

www.esthernorinedesigns.blogspot.com

Cheryl D. said...

You definitely don't want to get swans angry. Sure, they're beautiful and all, but if they get angry....RUN!

anitamombanita said...

Good thoughts. Sometimes we need to know when to put the boundaries UP and when to knock them down!

Nikki (Sarah) said...

this is such a great analogy and really hit home for me.

Jenny said...

What a wonderful story.

This really illustrated a conflict I'm having in my own life right now.

I so appreciate you sharing this terrific link!

Thank you!

Hugs and A+