come on in

i've been thinking extensively about boundaries, lately.  and how, although boundaries used correctly are always a safety, they can be pretty scary sometimes.  it's interesting that as humans we either want to have other people so close that we can't tell the difference between us and them or so far away that they'll never really touch the real us.  very few people naturally strike a happy medium, although a healthy medium is absolutely attainable.

i've also been thinking quite a bit about natural consequences for intruding on another person's boundaries.

as i've come to see, boundaries act like a fence.  it's not healthy to have a solid rock ten-foot wall surrounding my home with no gate, making it impossible for anyone to leave or enter.  it's also not healthy to have no fence at all - making it possible for all the evil to come in right along with the good.  one leaves no room for accepting new good things and people; the other leaves no mechanism for keeping out danger.

and so i am in search of a good study gate.

and maybe some white paint and wood, too.  my fences need to be thoroughly inspected.