Goodness Weekly 9.8.25
“Apologies aren’t meant to change the past, they are meant to change the future.”
— Fred Rogers
WHAT’S GOOD
We may still be beating the heat right now, but the holidays will be here before we know it. This year, we’re excited to share that we’ll be hosting our first Holiday Night Market at Charis Park on Friday, December 12th and 19th. The park will come alive with live entertainment, kid-friendly activities, mulled wine, and sparkling holiday lights. It will be a joyful community celebration and a chance to gather with friends and neighbors during this festive season.
We invite you to bookmark your calendars and plan to join us in supporting small businesses and local artisans who will be showcasing their unique creations. Interested in being a vendor? Submit your application here.
The Power of Repair
Jess Lowry, Executive Director, Sunset Ridge Collective
As we wrap up this series on practicing presence, it’s worth naming the obvious: we’re going to get it wrong sometimes. We’ll lose our patience, miss the moment, or hurt someone we love. Grace reminds us that this doesn’t have to be the end of connection. The practice of repair — owning our part, seeking forgiveness, and choosing to reconnect — can actually deepen trust and strengthen our relationships.
Part 5 — Repair & Reconnection: The Healing Power of Making Things Right
Conflict and misunderstanding are inevitable in any relationship — family, friends, classrooms, workplaces. But often, it’s not the rupture itself that does the most damage. It’s the absence of repair.
Grace reminded us that the nervous system feels safest when there’s follow-through after a hard moment. Repair means circling back, naming what happened, and taking responsibility for our part. That might sound like:
“I was short with you earlier, and I can see that hurt your feelings. I’m sorry.”
“I overreacted this morning. I wish I’d handled it differently.”
We hope to be able to follow the other practices we’ve been working through these past weeks, and I am so grateful for Grace’s wisdom and insight here. Inevitably we’ll make mistakes in our relationships — we’re human after all.
It is important to remember the practice of repair. I use this regularly in my parenting: when I’m short-tempered, pushy, annoyed, or stressed, I am learning to ask my kids for forgiveness and take responsibility for my emotions — because that is not their job.
This isn’t about perfection — it’s about showing the other person that the relationship matters more than our pride.
Forgiveness plays a big role here, too. And it’s not just for the other person’s sake. Research shows that carrying resentment can keep our bodies in a low-grade stress state, while forgiveness can improve mental health, lower anxiety, and increase feelings of connection. Forgiveness doesn’t mean excusing hurtful behavior — it means releasing the hold it has on us so healing can happen.
Researchers are finding the same thing Grace shared with us: repair and forgiveness actually calm the body. One study showed that while holding onto anger lights up the brain’s stress and reward centers (almost like an addiction), imagining forgiveness begins to quiet those pathways and strengthen the parts of the brain that help us respond with clarity and self-control. If you’d like to read more, Mockingbird recently highlighted this research here.
This week’s practice:
Think of a recent moment where there was tension or hurt. Take one step toward repair — even a small one — and notice how it shifts both you and the other person..
Love,
Jess
Coming Up…
Fridays, September 12th - October 3rd, 6 PM - 7:30 PM, The Embodied Way Workshop
September 13th, 9 AM - 1 PM, Second Saturday Farmers Market & Nuevos Vecinos Thrift Pop-Up
Saturday, September 20th, 11:30 AM - 1:30 PM Calm in Color: Learning Watercolor Glazing, The Art Room
Wednesdays, 11 AM - 1:30 PM, Open Studio Painting
Wednesdays, Mission Compost Pick Up
Thursdays-Sundays, Scott’s Pizza
Saturdays, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market, Charis Park
Sundays, Worship at 9 AM and 11 AM
Event Rentals - Interested in hosting your event at Charis Park or in our facilities? We are currently booking for 2025–please email rentals@sunset-ridge.org
Community Partners: For updated schedules and events please follow One Another Coffee, Sunset Ridge Farmers Market, NYX Wellness, Scott’s Pizza, Mission Compost, Sprouts School, Good Acres, and Community First Food Pantry.
Inhale: When I make a mistake
Exhale: remind me I am human and worthy of forgiveness
