The essence of Pine Cones is for those who feel trapped by the authoritarian power of others and are unable to escape.

The source of these feelings of inadequacy, and the need for the approval of others, can usually be traced back to childhood. There may be such a lack of self-confidence that the ability to express personal authority may well be nearly impossible. In adolescence, the inhibiting forces may have been so great that the normal changeover from parental authority to self-authority has not taken place. Perhaps there was a dominant parent who was over-protective, preventing the child from making its own decisions and thereby learning from its own mistakes. If the dominant authoritarian power came from a priesthood, then there may well be fears of evil, of the devil, or of losing one’s soul, unless one does exactly as one is told. To those who have been heavily dominated, the world can seem to be such a frightening place, that they need to turn to others for help and reassurance.