Boundaries Actually CREATE Expansion

I love boundaries more than the normal person. I find that putting limits on something (e.g. my time) leads to more inspiration & nourishment. It allows me to use my time/energy/bandwidth more efficiently, and actually creates space for more of what I want.

I’m going to explain an immensely helpful image of this using two concepts from astrology. It will be quick & painless if astrology doesn’t make sense to you, and so worth it.

Saturn — contraction • discipline • boundaries/limits

Pisces — expansion • play • fluid/boundary-less

Saturn is one of the many planets in astrology (& our galaxy) and Pisces is one of the zodiac signs. Think of Saturn (or Kronos in Greek mythology) as the taskmaster. He has a pocketwatch in one hand and a whip in the other and he will make you get your shit together. Pisces is portrayed as fish swimming. When I think of Pisces I think of the ocean of oneness. She’s intuitive, tuned into her emotions, flow-y.

Now imagine the best possible way these two could come together, which they do every 30 years or so when the planet Saturn passes into the section of the sky where the Pisces constellation resides.

My favorite way to imagine this comes from an episode of CosmicRx— I’ve used this image so many times. In March of 2023, Saturn had just moved into Pisces (signalling the end of my own Saturn return, thank the gods). Maddy Murphy, the host of this astrology podcast, describes Saturn in Pisces in the following way.

Imagine having a gallon of water and you get to choose what to with it. You could pour it onto the table and you’ll have a useless puddle. Think of that as Pisces for the moment (no boundaries… nothing holding it). Then imagine filling glasses of the water to drink, or putting it in your watering pot to feed your garden. Now the water has purpose. It’s defined. Saturn gives it limits… a boundary with which to contain it.

This can apply on so many levels. One simple example of this is waiting for a certain time of year for certain activities or treats (e.g. pumpkin spice lattes & spooky movies). Another is creating a routine for your creative outlet (and maybe even a designated space in your home) rather than waiting for inspiration & motivation to strike.

Here are some examples of how a boundary I impose actually creates expansion:

• I always had a 8PM study limit during grad school.

I would close all my books & notebooks & laptop at exactly 8:00 PM no matter how much fuel I had left to study. Besides being my best guard against burnout (of which it is very hard to spot the early signs), this practice also helped me focus my energy & bandwidth to more precise period of time. This means studying smarter & more efficiently, which ends up saving time.

• I don’t respond on my phone after ~ 9 PM.

Since I consistently leave my messages alone in the evenings, people are used to it so I know they won’t expect me to respond if they text later in the evening.

• I only read my nonfiction books on the cardio machine at the gym.

I’m often reading 4+ books at once, so if I devote a certain book or genre to read only when I’m at the gym, I’m way more likely to finish each of the books I’m reading. A nice side effect is that it helps me get to the gym. Sometimes when I don’t feel like going, I can easily convince myself by remembering which book I’m reading. It’s especially effective since I can only read ~30 minutes per day (or however long I’m on the cardio machine) and “can’t” read at home so if I wanna progress in a book, I have to go to the gym!

• I only drink lighter teas in the spring & summer.

I’m not talking about herbs here, which I drink all year-round. I only drink white, green, & jade oolong in the warmer months. I confine my tea drinking habits which might seem limiting, but it is 200% worth it for how exciting it is when a new season arrives.

How many things in your life are a puddle of water on the table which need a container? And what are your most nourishing boundaries?