QUESTION?

How can I safeguard my Self?

ANSWER

Keep your distance, protect your boundaries

“And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.”

Kahlil Gibran, “The Prophet”

Sometimes our boundaries get blurred. Your life seeps into my life, my life bleeds into yours and suddenly we’re not sure who we are or where we are going.

It’s surely a good thing that we connect with each other, that what happens to you is important to me, but not when it is at the expense of our Self. When we get lost in each other, when our individuality is submerged by the needs of another to the detriment of our own needs, then trouble lies in store.

We can only lead one life, our own. To lead that one life well, one day at a time, is sufficient challenge for any of us. I wrote “LIFE’S TAPESTRY” to remind myself of that.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

How good are you at protecting your boundaries?
Do you take sufficient care of your Self?
What can you share that may be of help to others?

Please leave your comments. I would love to hear from you.

Corinne

POEM FOR TODAY

LIFE’S TAPESTRY

We only have one life to live just one day at a time,

I cannot live your life for you and you cannot live mine,

And we all have a tapestry to weave with varied thread,

It hangs as testimony to reflect the path we tread.

One day we weave with vibrant hue the next with muted tone,

Another dreamy pastel each one personally sewn,

And here and there are shades of grey beside a patch of black,

And look today’s a new day and the colour’s coming back.

And so when we are weaving let’s be sure that in the end

The tapestry we hang will show that all the colours blend,

And even though our stitches show sometimes we’d not a clue,

Beneath the blaze of colour see the harmony shine through.

©Corinne Shields, 2013

If you enjoyed “LIFE’S TAPESTRY” please pass it on. You can find more inspirational poetry in

“A String of Pearls, a Yearbook of Daily Inspiration to Soothe the Soul and Rekindle the Spirit”

And no retreat would be complete without something lovely to look at, so here’s the

PICTURE FOR TODAY

Sotogrande, Spain

And just before you go ……..

Take what you like and leave the rest!!!

When it comes to the importance of respecting boundaries, nobody said it better than Kahlil Gibran. I can remember years ago as a student being mesmorised by the wisdom of his words.

On Marriage
Kahlil Gibran

You were born together, and together you shall be forevermore.
You shall be together when the white wings of death scatter your days.
Ay, you shall be together even in the silent memory of God.
But let there be spaces in your togetherness,
And let the winds of the heavens dance between you.

Love one another, but make not a bond of love:
Let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls.
Fill each other’s cup but drink not from one cup.
Give one another of your bread but eat not from the same loaf
Sing and dance together and be joyous, but let each one of you be alone,
Even as the strings of a lute are alone though they quiver with the same music.

Give your hearts, but not into each other’s keeping.
For only the hand of Life can contain your hearts.
And stand together yet not too near together:
For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other’s shadow.

If you haven’t got a copy of “The Prophet” on your bookshelves you are missing out!! Go beg, borrow or steal one, or failing that click the link and purchase your own asap.