For the last little bit I’ve been hearing a lot of people use the word boundaries.
N I never got it… ever.
I’ve heard different explanations, different descriptions, different experiences around trying to understand this word. This concept.
Still the fullness of its meaning escaped me.
Today I understood why… that’s not my word.
It doesn’t resonate.
But I’ve pinpointed what word does resonate.
Respect.
I’ve been talking a lot lately about trust- Surrendering and acceptance.
The other half of this equation for me is respect.
I feel like respect is what people are meaning when they talk about boundaries.
If I say no it means no.
If I say I’m uncomfortable I mean the situation needs to change.
It may need to be me who changes something, or you whom needs to listen and respect the request I’ve given.
It means I’m responsible for me and my actions. You are responsible for yours. Period.
Trust and respect actually build a stronger connection between two people. Or person and animal, or two animals etc.
I’ve been working on building both trust and respect within myself for years now.
(And yet I still feel like I have a lot to learn)
I’ve been building up the connections and relationships I have with both the humans and the animals around me.
I’m also working on my trust and respect with spirit and the earth.
These are concepts we seek and find within ourselves.
And as we build on them the experiences around us shift, change and grow into beautiful exchanges.
These are basic concepts the horses teach. They don’t let you get away with anything.
They respond instantly to your level of trust and respect.
The opposite of this being fear and insecurities.
And they genuinely ask for this in return. For you to trust them, and have respect for their space, their energy, their fears and insecurities.
This isn’t always an easy concept. And even just writing about it I feel like I could go on for hours trying to explain.
But it’s definitely something the horses have brought to my attention today…
And with out a doubt this will not be the last time I broach this subject…
I kinda feel like this subject … and this post should say ‘to be continued…’
I’ll sit with this and find a way of expressing the fullness of it, if I can, over the next few days.
Stay tuned…