Boundaries: Soil For Growth

These two words together — boundaries and grow — can sound like an oxymoron; boundaries ring with the tone of limitations, and grow has the texture, a feeling of something in bloom. But what if I were to tell you that you can't have growth without a firm and clear sense of boundaries?

Boundaries help create a structured and defined self or environ ment; in a sense, you become tangible- you know who you are and who you are not, and others know who you are and what you're about. This type of internal or external boundaried environment is what nurtures the ground for growth.

It's as if you're putting a fence around the garden of your heart or mind to keep the bad stuff out, so that the good seeds of growth have healthy soil to evolve and expand in. Healthy boundaries are an invitation to healthy relationships; and it is in healthy relationships that we grow, blossom, and bloom.