Abuse from the top down

"Every time we don't stand down the primary abusers in our lives, we lose a little ground, we fade into the night, we die a little inside.  Rising above it may be a temporary balm, but at some point, we have to come back into our bodies and speak it.  As important as it is to reach a stage of genuine forgiveness where possible, it is even more important to assert boundaries with those who have violated ours.  It may well be why they came into our lives - to force us to recognize and claim our own value."  Jeff Brown in Love it forward