Fear doesn’t wait for an invitation. It doesn’t appear with a puff of smoke, ready to grant wishes or bargain for your attention. It’s wilder than that. Fear is a shapeshifter, docile one moment, ferocious the next. It can ambush you without warning, slipping in through an old memory, a familiar ache, or a story you didn’t realize you were still carrying. Relentless! Accidental! It has a mind of its own. ❤️ Here’s the part we forget: Fear isn’t here to punish you. And it’s definitely not here to grant your worst-case scenarios. It’s not a genie in a lamp. 📩 It’s a messenger. A signal that something in you is stirring, shifting, waking up. A reminder that you’re alive, that you’re growing, that you’re brushing up against the edges of what matters. When we stop treating fear like a threat and start meeting it with curiosity, we get to choose how we respond, with breath, with presence, with awareness. When fear shows up in its unpredictable form, what helps you stay rooted instead of swept away?

Woo hoo! I reached level 3 in The Clarity Collective community! 🤩

For most of my life, if you asked me, What’s your favorite time of year? I would have said Fall. It was an answer I adopted long ago, and I never paused to ask myself why. Why Fall? For years, Fall felt like closure. A chance to wipe my hands of another year, finished, done, survived. I’d look at my list of what I hoped to accomplish, celebrate the wins, and ache over the failures. If I’m honest, Fall carried a heaviness: sadness, unmet goals, and the exhaustion that comes from pushing through another twelve months. By year’s end, I wasn’t just tired, I was worn out, bracing myself for the pressure of a new beginning. Several years ago, something shifted. I can’t point to a single moment, though the years leading up to it were full of what I’ll call adventures. Not the glamorous kind. Some of them made people angry. Some looked reckless from the outside; emotionally, financially, even professionally. And layered on top of everything, I was pursuing a master’s degree in an “emerging” discipline that sat far outside most people’s comfort zones. To some, it looked like I had gone completely off the rails. But for me, the longings finally outweighed the discomfort of being misunderstood, and the fear of making “yet another” mistake. So when I turned 59 and realized I was stepping into my 60th year, something in me said: mark this differently. Celebrate the becoming, not just the surviving. So I threw myself a launch party. I invited a small circle of family, friends, and colleagues; people who had shaped my life in both beautiful and complicated ways. We gathered at a local restaurant, and before dinner, I introduced each person to the group. In the background, Fight Song played softly, and something in me sparked. That January night rekindled a light that I believe first flickered the day I was born, January 31, 1960. Ever since, I’ve found myself looking forward to the new year; curious, hopeful, energized by what might unfold. Yes, I still arrive at year’s end tired. But now, I can say I’m satisfied.

@Rhimah Ajlouni @Serena DAfree @Lori Rogers 📣 We are so happy you are here. 🪴 We are a growing community of ambitious women. 🙉 We welcome your input and suggestions. 🔎 Take a look around and introduce yourself, if you haven't already. 💕 We look forward to getting to know you.

🪴 For those who don’t already know, my post‑graduate work in Restorative Practices included deep study of Restorative Justice, its processes, its philosophy, and the many ways it can be applied. And while the word justice tends to make most people think of courtrooms, conflict, or punishment, the truth is far broader. Restorative Justice isn’t limited to legal systems at all. It’s a relational approach that can be used in almost any situation involving two or more people. 🤔 But that raises a question many people don’t ask out loud: What does forgiveness have to do with any of this? 🧠 When we talk about harm, accountability, and repair, forgiveness can feel like an emotional wildcard, present for some, impossible for others, and misunderstood by many. Yet, it sits quietly at the edges of restorative work, not as a requirement, but as a possibility. This post explores that intersection: how restorative processes create the conditions where forgiveness might grow, and why they never force it. 🌿 Restorative Justice and Forgiveness: How They Intertwine Without Collapsing Into Each Other Forgiveness is one of those words that can feel heavy, complicated, or even impossible depending on the harm that’s been done. Restorative justice (RJ), on the other hand, is a structured process designed to repair harm and rebuild trust. When you put them side by side, something interesting happens: RJ doesn’t ask for forgiveness, but it often makes forgiveness feel more possible. Here’s how the five core elements of restorative justice naturally create space for forgiveness, without ever requiring it. 🧩 1. Healing Over Punishment Traditional systems focus on rules and consequences. RJ shifts the lens to people and relationships. When the central question becomes “Who was hurt, and what do they need?” the emotional landscape changes. Healing becomes the priority, not retribution. This shift alone can soften the ground where forgiveness might eventually take root. 🗣️ 2. Accountability Through Dialogue