What Can Roses Teach Us About Boundaries?

Natures True Beauty

The roses in my garden 🙂

We have the most gorgeous roses in my little Karoo garden. We have red rose topiaries that flank our driveway. These roses (see pic to your right and below) are so red that they actually hurt your eyes when you stare at them too long.

I set out to sketch these roses for a design idea I had for my store.

What stood out for me was that these beautiful roses had massive, massive thorns.

Big ones and little ones — so you can’t even think of touching them. And to pick them, you’d have to don some serious gloves!

Beauty and Boundaries

It got me thinking.

Such fragile and glorious flowers but you can’t touch them…lol. Nature has a great sense of humour!

Or maybe, just maybe, it’s natures way of protecting this grand creation.

After all, if roses weren’t so thwart with sharp sticky outy bits, we’d probably desecrate rose bushes instead of letting them be and leaving the admiration to pure sight — look, don’t touch.

Roses have some pretty strong boundaries.

Our Own Thorns

This is the design I came up with 🙂 For a limited time only, you can get these cushions for $20.83 when you buy 2 or more.

We, as human beings, can be pretty prickly too sometimes.

Occasionally, it takes the care of someone handling us with gloves and taking the time to have proper pruning sheers before they can get to us 😉

Through whatever experience we’ve gone through in our lives, we can sprout thorns on demand when we feel in danger of being torn down or stomped on. Perhaps even when we feel threatened by our own beauty (inner or outer) that can shine out and attract unwanted energy or attention.

It’s a thorny issue (corny, I know).

Some people may call us bitches or bastards for this inherent trait but, upon reflection, I think it could be nature’s very own way of helping us to set boundaries when our innate is telling us someone or something is not serving us. Or, possibly, we could be in very real danger, whether it is emotional or physical.

Sometimes thorns are needed.

My roses seem to be telling me to trust my innate sense of wisdom, it’s there for a reason. Or maybe they’re telling me I’m a prick.

Can I tempt you to read another article? Click on the pics below:

   Win the Lottery Using the LOA

Your Solar Plexus: First Impressions are Usually Right

We have an unnatural amount of data to process than that of the average human being, say just 30 years ago let alone a century back. We have social media and most of us get swept away in superfluous cr@p on our newsfeeds — we see the daily activities of people we don’t even know.

We subscribe to pages that feed us information on celebrities, sports stars, politicians, gurus — you name it!

We have so many faces, characters and perceived personalities to sift through every day that it is no wonder we have become numb to our own perceptions and impressions of people. We have forgotten that we have a superpower — we have inner radar.

Read related article: 3 Tips to Help You Know When You Can Truly Trust Your Gut

WTF Happened to Freedom of Thought and Freedom of Speech!

SUBSCRIBE icon 1I have noticed — with greater severity of late — that people (or sheeple in this case) seem to be following a cut and dry ‘herd’ mentality. A way of thinking that leaves no room for grey area or much-needed debate or alternative perspective.

I get that it’s hard to see — when we’re in the thick of it — that we’re being ushered into thinking left or right (or whatever the case may be).

I have noticed — with growing concern — that people seem to be choosing sides without much thought, reacting out of emotional pain-bodies with little contemplation to evidence, condemning without patience or research of an alternative point of view, having a do or die mentality and completely sh*tting on another persons right to have a competing perception or opinion for him/herself.

If an opinion differs from mainstream it is literally taken down or you are ‘unfriended’ or persecuted or trolled into submission.

Welcome to the United States of Eurasia!

This is not a democratic society we are living in, it’s turning into that insidious Orwellian society we were warned about. I saw something the other day that made me laugh although it’s not really funny: (paraphrasing) “1984 was supposed to be a fictional novel and not a governmental instruction manual”

The media is whipping people into a galvanized frenzy and we need to be extremely careful!

The best thing you can pray for right now is clarity of mind (see my article: ) and the ability to be able to allow someone else a contrary opinion. It’s the ‘my God is the true God and your God sucks’ mentality.

We need to honour the opinions, religions, political views of others and not tell them how they should think. It’s just plain childish to bulldoze someone else to have your line of thinking. It certainly doesn’t get anybody anywhere and only creates greater division (which is a win for the ‘Powers that Were’).

There’s only one rule in the Wiccan tradition and that is ‘do what you want as long as it harms none’. Well that pretty much covers it all, doesn’t it?

If other people don’t abide by this, know that karma is a bitch. All you can do is live in your integrity and help others who may not have the rights or ability to make condoning decisions if need be (as in children, animals, the Earth).

Judging Books by Content Not Covers

I wanted to end this off with saying that we, as a species, have a wonderful ability to sense or ‘read’ energy — it’s that gut instinct (solar plexus). You have a chakra located in your belly area that has an innate intelligence. If you take the time out to actually feel or listen to what it is telling you, you will greatly benefit from the experience.

First impressions are usually accurate because your energy field is picking up on the other energy fields emissions  and doing a quick and smart analysis of intent. When you get an uneasy feeling — it’s a sure sign that although the persons smile, words, resume and actions might be polished (and completely fake), their inherent nature is lacking somehow.

We know that white toothy grins do not the trustworthy politician make, so we need to start looking past peoples faces and words and tune into the frequency they are emitting.

Trust your gut — it’s usually never wrong. It’s a super-power worth developing — you’re going to need it!

Read related article: How To Manifest Through the Solar Plexus Chakra: Magnified Manifesting!


You can now hear Cherie Roe Dirksen on Big Indie Giant radio as she reads out select articles on air.

She also gives weekly news headline updates taken directly from the Conscious Life News site, so be sure to tune in.

 

Cherie Roe Dirksen is a self-empowerment author/columnist/radio presenter, multi-media artist and musician from South Africa.

To date, she has published 3 self-help and motivational books and brings out weekly inspirational blogs at her site www.cherieroedirksen.com. Get stuck into finding your passion, purpose and joy by downloading some of those books gratis when you click HERE.

Her ambition is to help you to connect with your innate gift of creativity and living the life you came here to experience by taking responsibility for your actions and becoming the co-creator of your reality. You can follow Cherie on Facebook(The Art of Empowerment — for article updates). She has an official art Facebook page (Cherie Roe Dirksen – for new art updates). You can also check out her Facebook band page at Templeton Universe.

Cherie posts a new article on CLN every Thursday. To view her articles, click HERE.

This article (Your Solar Plexus: First Impressions are Usually Right) was originally written for and published by Conscious Life News and is published here under a Creative Commons license with attribution to the author Cherie Roe Dirksen and ConsciousLifeNews.com. It may be re-posted freely with proper attribution, author bio, and this Copyright/Creative Commons.

Other articles you may enjoy:

Rekindling the Human Spirit with Lemons

The Truth About Being All Stirred Up

Don’t Let Control Issues Ruin Your Life

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Rekindling the Human Spirit with Lemons

10 Ascension Tips You Need to Know

Cosmic Dance

As tongue-in-cheek as this article title intended to be — there is something to this biblical concept of ‘ascension’ but it may not be what you think.

To Be or Not To Be…What Was the Question?

Who am I?  

If this has been your question, then I would like to officially welcome you to the human race.

What needs to be clarified is that you know who you are.  You are the I Am that I Am.  This is not just some new flavour caption or the latest (or possibly, oldest) spiritual declaration of the times. This is a statement that holds no ego, no space and no time.  This is your true identity.  When you question your identity, you believe that you are less than what you are.  You are never this — you are only stuck in the illusion or the dream that you are lacking in some way or another.

Your Personal Spiritual Path

Now to find true meaning behind the saying is your spiritual path — your journey to enlightenment.  To say the words with no meaning or context is useless and is as effective as saying any prayer like a parrot and not feeling the words being said.

“You do not need to ‘find’ yourself because you were and are never lost.”

We so often miss this vital point.  Your ‘homework’ is to give juice to this phrase.  You do not need to ‘find’ yourself because you were and are never lost.  You need to rediscover who you are because you have forgotten – that’s all.  How you get to this point is entirely up to you.  Every soul takes a unique path to their spiritual awakening and this can be fun and daunting at the same time.  Now, this brings me to ascension – the latest hot topic.

Don’t Be Fooled by the Rapture

EscapismWill some be beamed off the face of the Earth (possibly like the Mayan civilization – disappeared never to be seen again) or will we all die and move on to the wondrous 5th dimension that has been promised by so many prophets and soothsayers?  Will the religiously righteous be taken up to heaven while the rest are left to fight out the apocalypse?  Is this all just one big hoax or money-making scheme?

They do seem like rather strange questions, don’t they? But believe it or not, they are being asked. We are looking outside ourselves for answers and we want them fast.

Some were even led to believe that the 21st December 2012 was going to be ‘the date’.

Now here’s how I understand this cosmic rapturing conundrum.

Could Love Be Key to the Ascension?

Ascension is a state of elevating yourself into a different level of consciousness and, in my humble opinion, is not a physical event.  This is a lateral and not a literal experience.

What has love got to do with it?  Let’s examine this more closely.

Firstly, fear is the catalyst for being in an eternal drama.  I say eternal because if you don’t break the pattern of fear it will lead to the inevitable cycle of karma – cause and effect.  You will be doing it again if you don’t learn this time around.

“You incarnated with the intention to overcome the illusion and fear is the root cause of all illusion.”

This is not some form of punishment – this will come from the will of your over soul – your higher self. You incarnated with the intention to overcome the illusion and fear is the root cause of all illusion.  Love is the reality and love will cancel out all fear.

So your job is to examine fear – not to push it aside like most of us are guilty of doing but to take it out and look at it.  We need to face the fear and walk through it.  You can take this literally or metaphorically, the choice is yours and will fit the situation.

Trust Your Gut Instinct

Your discernment is the key factor in outing your darkness.  Only you know what cobwebs are lurking in the deep caverns of your soul.  Only you can dust those corners and expose them to the light.

If some fears need facing head on, then do it!  If some need therapy, then do it!  If some need deep reflection and meditation, then do it!  No more excuses.  If you are making excuses, for whatever reasons you have, be very sure that you are fully aware that your excuses ARE your choices.

“No-one else is responsible for you.”

If you choose to excuse yourself from your lessons then you will be in for another round on the karma wheel – your choice.  Some people take longer to pull finger than others – this applies to lifetimes too, you know.  So it is appropriate that some will not achieve full enlightenment in this lifetime, there will be other lifetimes to battle this out – your choice.  If you are a go-getter, then why not make it this lifetime?

As Yoda said, ‘Do or do not – there is no try’.  But the bottom line to this bollocking is that you must be responsible for your choices.  No-one else is responsible for you.  If this is your mindset you are in for a rude awakening!  No pun intended.

I Am that I Am

Now let’s get back to ascension. Ascension, for me, is embodying your experience here on earth by:

  • knowing at a deep soul level your ‘I Am’ presence (being resolute about who you are),
  • accepting what is and always knowing when to take appropriate loving action when there is something you can change,
  • understanding that unconditional love holds the answer to all problems,
  • finding the compassion in any situation and forgiving freely,
  • giving freely with no attachment,
  • seeing divinity en-masse, with no exceptions,
  • knowing, at all times, that there is divine order,
  • knowing you are a part of the entire system called ‘life’ therefore stepping into unity consciousness,
  • honouring all life — in whatever shape or form, including self,
  • being comfortably in the world but not of it.

We need to face everything with resolution that all is in divine order.  Whatever is just is.  There is a peace that comes with this acceptance.  If you are fighting this phrase you still need to accept that there is divine order and that you are divine.

If you do feel this then when you are faced with a fear based situation, be the calm presence.

“There simply is no ‘ceasing to exist’ – even if you do leave your body behind.”

Even if this situation means death – all you have to do is state I AM THAT I AM.  If you die in fear you will generate a lesson that you will have to walk through again…yup, the good ‘ol wheel of karma.

If you die stating and knowing in your heart that you ARE the divine, you have accepted mastery.  You are in dharma or nirvana.  There simply is no ‘ceasing to exist’ — even if you do leave your body behind.  If you ascend with or without your body —state the I AM THAT I AM.

Your only job is to make sure you know what you are stating and that it is felt in your heart.

The Heart Chakra

When you are faced with fear, try to concentrate your energy on your heart center.  Feel your heart swell with love and gratitude for whatever brings you these feelings in your life – whether it be your children, grandchildren, pets, friends, anything that brings you joy and feelings of elation — this is how you will elevate yourself into a different frequency.  Now expand that feeling.

Practice this over and over again until you can switch on the sensation of immense love whenever you have to.  When you send out love and light to the world or to anyone or anything, make sure you are feeling the love in your heart centre (chakra).  This makes it more potent and it will bring more of that feeling back to you – so it’s a win-win situation.

When you love, there simply is no space left for fear.  You will be on a different vibratory plane.  Fear won’t ‘fit’ anymore.

Truth Be Told

I read a channeled message saying that we need to speak our truths.  If you don’t speak your truth for fear of what people may think of you, you are not ready.  That resonated with me and I am now fully motivated to stand up and say it like it is and if people think I’m a nutter, well, why the hell not!

I am proud to stand up at AA (abnormal anonymous – although not quite so anonymous anymore) and say, ‘Hi, my name is Cherie and I am completely abnormal.  But hey, I Am that I Am.’

The ascension is the awakening to your divine self, the knowledge that you are a part of God and the acceptance that everything has divine order and purpose.  In order to do this, you must also see this divinity en-masse — in everyone and everything.  How can peace and love not arise with this attitude?

Other articles you may enjoy:

Are You Being Challenged Today?

How to Get and Maintain that Positive Attitude

The Secret to Excellent Living

Finding Humility Through Wisdom

Taking Responsibility For Your Co-Creative Abilities

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