We all have a “spot” that we feel is ours.  What’s yours? What Spot Have You Claimed? by Lisa BerryWhat spots have we Claimed to be ours? What spots have we denied ourselves from occupying? Expressing our personalities and identity isn’t always what we announce, it’s also what we don’t say or show. The light and shadow of all spots exist. We can see how both are gifts once we explore their connection to what attracted us in the first place. Mom, she put her feet on my side of the couch! Mom, she put her game on my side of the car! Mom, she won’t get out of my room! Claiming our spot, putting a stake in the ground, identifying the perimeter lines, we do this to state our presence, our value, but we also do this to feel safe, and to know what area to guard, to protect, and to have something we own that we can design and create to express ourselves from. Our spot has a relationship to our identity. It’s where we feel comfortable, where we retreat to, where we operate from. It’s also where others recognize us. People connect us to the “spot” we choose in life. We often recognize someone at their work or in a uniform or driving a certain color car however when we run into them outside of those familiar places and “spots” we look right past them. We also do this when we change our external look including our attitudes. We can feel and appear to others as very different people when we are stressed compared to when we are relaxed or having fun. But what happens when we are told that we can’t have the spot we want? What happens when we are guilted from or punished for...

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