For the past six years—since my release from incarceration—I have searched for inner peace: a salve for a shattered soul, a sense of calm after years of upheaval. That search has not always been easy. But it has also led me to clarity.
I am not trying to erase the nearly five years I spent incarcerated. I am not trying to return to the person I once was. And I am certainly not trying to forget the women I met or the experiences I witnessed behind prison walls. The answer to all of those questions is no.
I have forgiven. I have accepted. But I will never forget—and I shouldn’t. Those years fuel the work I do today. They reshaped my life’s trajectory and gave me purpose. I can now say, with complete sincerity, “I get it.” Not as a slogan or a talking point, but as a lived truth. Continue reading >>>
