This week, I’ve been thinking a lot about boundaries. Actually, to be totally honest, it’s a theme I think about a lot since boundaries have been my “weak link” for much of my life. Here are some thoughts from my book…
“In Spirit, we are limitless space—we exist in infinity. As individual beings, our boundaries give shape to the expression of Spirit. I think that in order to have good boundaries, I need to tend to my own temple, cultivate that inner sanctuary, consider who I am as sacred and worth attention. This is an invitation to self-esteem.
If we understand Spirit as connection to all-that-is, and perceive we are literally made up of the same particulate matter and space as everything in our environment, we realize our boundaries are the container of that elusive substance. Our body is the vessel that makes us individuals, gives each of us a different face, a different perspective, gives us the gift of distinction. To experience the two together is to experience the “we are all one” consciousness at the same time that we discover and celebrate the richness of our diversity.
We tend to think of boundaries as separating us. However, when our boundaries are not intact, we either co-dependently merge identities or we stand apart, alienated. In both cases we miss the sense of true connection. Ironically it is actually our boundaries that provide the doorway to connection where we can feel both autonomous and where it is that we overlap or meet. When they are intact, we feel more connected to others because we are standing in connection to ourselves.” Excerpt from The Way of Joy
Vicki Dello Joio, founder of The Way of Joy: A Spiritual Fitness Program, is a teacher, speaker and performing artist. Integrating over 40 years of Chi Kung practice with other martial arts as well as her work in Yoga, Feldenkreis, physical fitness and theater, Vicki has developed a dynamic set of tools to increase awareness, transform obstacles into opportunities and enhance creative potential. Book: The Way of Joy, CD: Short Meditations for a Busy Life.