Critical Perspectives and Reflections

When I first bought this place, the tin roof on the original shelter was newly painted. Now, weathered and rusted from years of harsh winters and neglect, the roof on the other side has caved in. Seems like a metaphor for life. At one time pristine, but after many years of hardships we are all a little the worse for wear. I purchased it from a hunter who lived in Sturgeon Falls. He had purchased it from a local on the road behind. The local did as all others did and bought up many adjacent acres over the years when land was cheap, and over the years, as they aged, they had to sell off parcels of land they could no longer look after. My parcel was originally 90 acres, which was probably at one time part of his 440 acres. The 90 acres became divided further into 2 parcels, of which we own 40. Funny thing about buying land when you are from the big city; you buy 40 acres and it seems so big and, sure enough, you get jealous of the folks who own 200 or 400. But now, all those large parcels...

Toxic masculine and feminine traits are related back to the Patriarchal system1 in which those that possess them are reared. It is caused by the difficulty in this system of being able to develop the ability to nurture and be nurtured. This in turn results in a certain insufficient level of trust and/or feelings of safety. Men over compensate their masculinity because they haven't been given the opportunity to be truly in touch with their emotions. Raised by emotionally unavailable or absentee fathers, they were not allowed to show emotion. And when they do release emotion, there is a tendency to use those emotions to manipulate, usually related as a survival mechanism. Emotionally unavailable mothers start their journey towards mixed feelings about other women in their lives because they attach, either through chasing someone else who is emotionally unavailable or not trusting when love is present. They also have a hard time accepting love because they feel they themselves are no...