Season 4 EP. 98 Some Gardens Need Fences (C2TC8 H.E.R. Circle)

Season 4 EP. 98 Some Gardens Need Fences (C2TC8 H.E.R. Circle)

What if the thing you’ve been avoiding isn’t a difficult conversation…

but a necessary one?

As we continue Season 4: Walking the Garden, Madison Samone Chase invites listeners into a conversation about value, stewardship, courage, and the often uncomfortable choices required to protect what matters most.

In a world that celebrates constant availability, unlimited access, and endless accommodation, this episode challenges us to consider whether saying yes to everything may be costing us more than we realize.

Through the lens of faith, personal growth, wellness, and intentional living, Madison explores why some of life’s most important acts of stewardship require us to become comfortable with discomfort.

This episode is for high-performing women, mothers, aunties, godmothers, single moms, dog moms, entrepreneurs, caregivers, and anyone navigating a season of growth, transition, healing, stewardship, and becoming.

As always, C2TC8 offers a PPT Audit, a SAC Challenge (Spontaneous Authentically Assertive Communication), 3 Keys 🔑, and 1 Reflection Question ❓ to help you pause for a cause, reflect, and carry the lesson with you long after listening.

30 New Episodes launch the 15th of every month for 15 days, with 2 episodes daily at 8AM and 8PM CST.

🤍 Join and support C2TC8 H.E.R. Circle

⭕️ https://www.buzzsprout.com/2574476/support

🔗 https://linktr.ee/madisonchasefitness

If this episode pricked your heart or lit a spark, please follow, share it with someone you care about, leave a comment so this becomes a dialogue and not a monologue, and leave a five-star review.

And remember, there’s always grace in this space.

Blessings to You & Yours! Until tomorrow.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Season four. This episode is entitled Some Gardens Need Fences. Have you ever noticed that gardeners don't build fences because they hate what's outside the garden? They build fences because they value what's inside the garden. You see, the fence isn't punishment. The fence isn't rejection. The fence isn't judgment. The fence is protection. And the wiser I get, the more I realize that some of the stress, frustration, resentment, anxiety, fear, and exhaustion we experience sometimes isn't because we're growing the wrong things. It's because we're leaving everything unprotected. Our peace, our time, our energy, our healing, our joy, our goals, our purpose, our dreams, our relationships, our faith. Everything has access. Everyone has access, especially if you're on social media, if you're in group text. And then we wonder why what we're trying to grow or what we're growing struggles to survive. As we continue walking the garden, today we're talking about boundaries, stewardship, and why some gardens need fences. Hey y'all, I'm Madison Simone Chase, also known as Miss Chase. I was raised in church where my great-grandmother played the piano, and the pastor of the church was like my biological father. And my faith journey has always been at the center of who I am. And I'm incredibly thankful to have been raised by a hardworking, sacrificial, high-functioning, high-performing single mother who remains my biggest fan, my bestie forever, my BFF for real. And honoring God through service and making my mama proud and using the gifts he gave me has always been deeply important to me. Over the past several seasons of Cut to the Chase at 8, now C2TC8, her circle, which stands for high performing, empowered women who are ready to thrive, we've talked about awareness, detox, discernment, boundaries, rebuilding, and no more nice, and becoming. Because before a gardener plants for the next season, the gardener walks the garden. The gardener takes inventory, notices what flourished, notices what struggled, notices what produced fruit, the gardener notices what never took root, it notices what needs pruning, and then the gardener notices what has completed its purpose. And that is what season four is all about walking the garden, taking an honest look at the people, places, and things in our lives, not with judgment, not with shame, but with wisdom. Because every person, every place, and everything produces fruit. And before we ask for a bigger harvest, we may need to take a closer look at the roots. So whether you're a high-performing, high-functioning mother, single mother, father, single father, caretaker, entrepreneur, aspiring entrepreneur, working a nine-to-five, juggling two or three jobs, quietly rebuilding or quietly building something new or shifting lanes, or simply trying to grow through life one season at a time, the space and the circle is for you. So if you're listening andor watching, pull up a real chair or a digital chair and grab yourself a cup of hot or cold herbal tea. And welcome to my cozy home or my digital home of Cut to the Chase at a C2TC8 Her Circle, a 15-minute micro-learning moment for macro living transformations. And I am truly overjoyed that you are here because this is where we explore life together through our lived experiences, yours and mine, while giving ourselves real grace in this space as we navigate some very interesting times. Here we talk about spirit, mind, and body health because our health truly is our wealth in micro doses for macro living. Now let's take an opening breath together. We're going to inhale for three, two, one, exhale for five, four, three, two, one. One of the biggest misconceptions about boundaries is that boundaries are about keeping people out. Healthy boundaries are actually about protecting what matters most, the valuable things. And gardeners understand this. They don't build fences because they dislike the world. They don't build fences because they understand the value of what they're cultivating. That's why they build fences because they understand the value. And the truth is, everything valuable requires protection. Money requires protection. Our time requires protection. Our health requires protection. Relationships, romantic relationships, family relationships, friendships require protection. Dreams require protection. Our peace and joy requires protection. And yet many of us expect growth without boundaries. We want healthy relationships while allowing unhealthy behaviors that people tend to place on us unlimited access. We want peace while giving chaos unrestricted entry. We want healing while continually exposing ourselves to the things that wound us. We want focus while saying yes to everything. We want rest while remaining available to everyone. We want growth while refusing to protect it. Stewardship isn't only about what we plant, it's also about what we protect. The challenge is that many of us were never taught what healthy fences sound like. We were taught to be nice, we were taught to be agreeable, we were taught to be available, we were taught to avoid disappointing people. So instead of communicating boundaries, we absorb frustration. Instead of communicating capacity, we carry resentment. Instead of communicating honestly, we silently hope people will figure it out. But healthy fences require communication, not harsh communication, not defensive communication, not aggressive communication, honest communication, clear communication, authentic communication. Which brings me to the PPT audit. People, places, and things. People. Who currently has access to me? Who contributes to what I'm trying to grow? And let's take out the word trying because we're all growing something right now. Who consistently drains, distracts, or damages it? Places. What environments support my growth? What environments constantly leave me depleted? Things. What habits protect my peace? What habits sabotage my progress? What boundaries need strengthening? What access needs adjusting? Which brings me to Sack Challenge. Spontaneous, authentic, assertive communication. And this week's sack challenge is simple. Identify one area of your life that needs offense. Then practice one act of spontaneous, authentically assertive communication. Maybe it's saying, I'm not available to do that. That doesn't work for me. I need more time. I'm choosing something different, or simply no. And maybe it sounds like, and this is a lived experience for me. I value a friendship, but I'm finding myself carrying conversations long after they end. I want to support you, but I also need to be mindful of my own emotional bandwidth and what I'm able to carry right now. Or I care about you and I'm not equipped to help you carry this. Have you considered speaking with a therapist? And the goal isn't conflict. The goal isn't control. The goal isn't alignment. The goal is honoring what is true for you in the moment rather than defaulting to people pleasing, guilt, avoidance, resentment, or silence. Because healthy fences are often built one honest conversation at a time. Which brings me to the three keys. Key number one boundaries are not rejection, they are protection. Healthy fences don't exist because something is wrong outside. They exist because something valuable is growing inside. Which brings me to key number two. Not everyone needs the same level of access to you. And stewardship requires discernment. And access should be earned and not assumed. Which brings me to key number three. What you fail to protect often becomes difficult to grow. Growth requires more than planting and watering, it also requires protection. Our one reflection question. Where in my life do I need a fence because something valuable is trying to grow? Again, where in my life do I need a fence because something valuable is growing? Today we explore why some gardens need fences, and not because they're unfriendly, and not because they're exclusive or there's a VIP section, and not because they're afraid, but because they're growing something worth protecting. And stewardship isn't only about planting, it's also about watering, it's also about waiting. Stewardship also requires protection because boundaries are not evidence of rejection, they're evidence of value. And so this week, I'd like to challenge you to pay attention to what you're growing. Your peace, your healing, your faith, your relationships, your time, your purpose. And then ask yourself: does it have the protection it deserves? Because what we value, we protect. Before you go, let's revisit today's three keys. Key number one, boundaries are not rejection, they are protection. Key number two, not everyone needs the same level of access. Key number three, what we fail to protect often becomes difficult to grow. And our one reflection question for this episode: Where in my life do I need a fence? Because something valuable is growing right now. And take that take that question with you this week and sit with it and pray about it, journal about it, and see what comes up for you, what comes to the surface. Remember, a gardener doesn't build a fence because the gardener hates what's outside the garden. The gardener builds a fence because it values what's inside. So continue to give yourself grace in this space. Let's take one closing breath. We're gonna inhale for three, two, one. We're gonna exhale for five, four, three, two, one. If this episode pricked your heart or lit a spark, please subscribe and share this podcast with someone you care about. And please leave a comment so that this becomes a dialogue and not just a monologue. And if you feel led, please leave a five-star review so that this space can continue to grow and serve others. Until next time, I am Madison Simone Chase, and this has been another episode of Cut to the Chase at 8, C2TC8, Her Circle, which stands for high performing, empowered women and some men. Thank you for listening, who are ready to thrive. It is a 15 minute micro learning moment for macro living transformations. Blessings to you and yours. And remember, a fence doesn't diminish the value of the garden. It reveals it. Until tomorrow.