Hi Carolyn,
No fight involved, is there... ?
No. No fight. Anyone wanting a fight with me will have to catch me first.
I have long legs and can run really fast!
tt
didn't think so, tt.
It's true that good fences make good neighbors...
and I think you're wise to keep your fence freshly painted and free of noxious weeds.
That's what the ranchers around here do to their fence-rows... spray them to get rid of the viney growth (oh, that trumpet-vine stuff is awful... they call it devil's trumpet) which would tear them down and expose the cattle inside to danger, if they were to roam.
Keeping fences good and sturdy is the loving thing to do... both for yourself and for your neighbor.
Talking above the board is loving, too... open and direct.
There's no fear... because there is no shame.
There is no shame in saying, "This is where I leave off and you begin. Stay out of my skin...
and stop kicking me beneath the table, too!"
You know, years ago (gee, now I know I'm a gramma... I'm sounding like my own grandma!)... one of my kids used to do that. In the backseat of the car, she'd pinch her younger sibling... or kick her... or just quietly mock her in some way.
It was all done in stealth mode, so as not to be noticed.....
and my little shy one would try to ignore it, because she knew that any trouble in the car would really create a ruckus with her very angry dad.
But eventually,it would get to be too much for shy one and she'd holler out - STOP IT!
I'd turn around and see the most angelic little face on my 7 year old...
while the 3 year old was in tears (not physically hurt, but afraid of her dad's reaction)...
and who could prove what had happened?
You had to have been there to know...
just the pattern of past behavior, combined with trust in the one who'd sat silently, always, trying to mind her own business and not create a scene and - clearly - innocent.
Clarity is good. Thank you for bringing some into this picture.
Love,
Carolyn