02 | May | 2012 | Nurture Self 365

“We can only make ourselves the victim.” Gillian Anderson

We spent the day cleaning out, weeding and building new supports for the raspberry patch. We started this patch a few years back, and have kind of neglected it, until this year. We’ve added on to it . . . making it 50 feet long. It’s gonna be one awesome raspberry manufacturing machine this year! There are dangers of working around prickly canes tho – as the photo below shows. Those canes got me pretty good in several places. I was thinking that I could place the blame on those darn raspberries . . . those inanimate objects that grow protective thorns for a reason! Isn’t that what we typically do . . . place the blame for injury or hurt on an external source, instead of taking responsibility for creating the circumstances in the first place?? So easy to do . . . lash out and feel better because “it’s not my fault!” However, I’ve discovered over the years that taking accountability for my own actions is much simpler and easier in the long run . . . I made the choice to attack those raspberry canes without proper protection to prevent injury. Those canes were simply doing what they were engineered to do . . . protect themselves! I subject myself to their abuse, however, because I love what their ultimate offering is . . . delicious and juicy tart little fruits that will appear in the next month or so . . . nothing like fresh berries off the bush, homemade raspberry jam, or fresh frozen berries to enjoy all year long!