In response to The Daily Post’s weekly photo challenge: “Boundaries.”
Many boundaries are manmade – individual and personal.
Walking in the country near my son’s home I was surprised to see the locked gate and wooden fence with an electric fence above. First, this is a very rural area with few people passing by, mainly local neighbors or visitors. The average person wouldn’t go out of their way to find this area. There are no stores, rough roads, few people, and many animals such as bears and coyotes, those unfamiliar would not just walk or drive through this area. Most of the people who put up fences with additional electric fence are from New York City and this is their second home that is rarely visited.
Fences out in the country set up boundaries
Fences
What surprised me most was how far the fence traveled along the road. It seemed like a half mile of fencing and in one area the fence was on both sides of the road. Behind the fence you could see a pond, large house, rock formations, another pond, apple trees and many other sights. It was a beautiful property.
Love Locks – Cliff Walk in Newport Rhode Island
Another boundary was set up as safety for those walking along The Cliff’s in Newport, RI. Sometimes boundaries are set for our own protection and many are set up to avoid law suit. Today there are more boundaries in place for the safety than when I was a child.
While at the beach we sometimes get a little annoyed when the young life guards blow their whistle and yell if we are outside of the boundaries which are clearly marked by the dividers. Even the kayakers have to obey the boundaries. There is a clearly marked area for swimming and those in boats, kayaks, and canoes are not to cross it.
I really loved how the colors of the children’s bucket and clothing as well as the trees reflecting on the water. It is important that swimmers know where the land under the water drops off. The boundary also allows parents and children to know where it is safe for smaller children. This also helps the lifeguards keep a closer eye on the swimmers by having them in a smaller area along the shore.
Sometimes we don’t always pay attention and invade the boundaries set by others. For those who enjoy writing in journals, you may have boundaries around who can read yours, if anyone. When my children were young we had an agreement that no one was to read the others journal. No matter what I didn’t read my children’s journals. If they left them lying open on the floor we would close the cover and place the journal in the bedroom of the owner. I journal and do not want anyone reading mine – it is a personal boundary that I am very serious about.
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- Hidden throughout the office in baskets
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- Favorite type of note book
As you can see I have had some of the journals for quite some time, decades actually. They are in various sizes, shapes, and colors/patterns. This is a self-made boundary and has only been violated by one person. He actually highlights and wrote in my journal. There was a sense of distrust after this happened and when one boundary is violated there is always a lingering fear that another will be as well. Loss of trust can destroy relationships.
There are boundaries established around entering someone’s home. I feel that you should be able to leave your doors unlocked because others should know not to enter someone’s home, bedroom, or bathroom in use without permission. We do have to lock our doors because not everyone values boundaries and personal space. When someone comes into my home without my permission or knowledge it feels like my personal space has been violated. My home is a sanctuary. If someone enters without permission their presence – energy – is left behind. For me, I clean and smudge to remove their presence. Unfortunately, the same person who read and marked my journal is the same person who entered my home without permission. Although I forgive, forgetting is something else. Once a boundary is violated, trust is lost. So for myself, personal boundaries and trust go hand in hand.
Do you have personal boundaries around something? Have you ever had personal boundaries violated? If so, what did you do to resolve the violation? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Love and Light!
