Gevurah

Strength and Stringency, 

Boundaries and Borders, 

Control and Constriction, 

these limits can seem so, well, limiting, 

but then remember what happens 

when the boundary of the skin is breached, 

when we lose control and the brakes fail, 

when the bladder is unable to hold its contents, 

when the doors or windows will not close, 

when the river spills over its bank,

when the valves of the heart forget 

how to open and close in tandem, 

when we feel only raw emotion. 

Then we begin to appreciate 

the necessary restraints, 

the levies on the bank,

a repair to the rift, 

application of pressure to a wound 

a stitch for the gash, 

and the strength it takes to hold on.