---
title: Alone
description: "Alone.\nYou're not alone.\n\nThey want you to think you’re alone.\nBut you are a critical part of the community.\n\nThey want you to think you’re helpless.\nBut you are brave beyond measure.\n\nThey want you to be frozen in fear.\nBut you breathe, stretch, and feel."
image: https://l3catalystgroup.com/hubfs/josh-nuttall-xl2piFfdzyA-unsplash.jpg
---
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# Alone
by [Dee (Deanna) Rolffs (they/them)](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/author/dee-rolffs)
January 30, 2025
Alone
You're not alone.
They want you to think you’re alone.
But you are a critical part of the community.
They want you to think you’re helpless.
But you are brave beyond measure.
They want you to be frozen in fear.
But you breathe, stretch, and feel.
**The Power of Connection**
We live in a world designed to isolate us, to make us feel small. Systems of oppression thrive when we turn away from each other, when we lose sight of our collective power. But we are not alone.
Look around—there is strength in every neighbor, in every shared glance, in every hand extended to help. Our communities are not just places we live; they are the roots that ground us. And when we nurture those roots, we grow stronger together.
They want you to turn on your neighbor.
But we know that neighbors are crucial to thriving.
They want you to feel lost, unsure of what is happening.
But you can see it with your own eyes. You know.
### **The Patterns Are Ancient—And We Are Wiser**
History repeats itself, not by accident, but by design. Unless we heal. The powerful have long used fear, division, and confusion as tools of control. But we have seen this before. We have learned from those who came before us. We learn from those that are helpers and truth tellers today.
We are not caught flat-footed. We recognize the patterns. And because we see them, we can disrupt them. We can break the cycles, refuse the lies, and write a different future.
They want you to be surprised.
But we will look oppression in the face and say:
**You will not steal our joy. You will not steal our community. You will not steal our love.**
They want you to feel trapped and victimized.
But you are free beyond measure.
### ****
### **Breathe. Strategize. Heal.**
We are not just fighting against oppression; we are building something new. A world where love, joy, and mutual care are not radical acts, but the foundation of our daily lives.
So breathe.
Strategize.
Effing heal.
Because our greatest act of resistance is to thrive.
Peace, love, and liberation in solidarity with you all, especially now.
.png?width=116&height=58&name=Dee%20(1).png)
---
🔥 *What does resistance look like for you? What brings you joy in the fight for justice? Share your thoughts below—mutuality is.* 💙
###### Tags:
[community,](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/tag/community) [learning,](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/tag/learning) [leadership,](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/tag/leadership) [joy,](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/tag/joy) [systems](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/tag/systems)
Post by [Dee (Deanna) Rolffs (they/them)](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/author/dee-rolffs)
January 30, 2025
Dee (Deanna) Rolffs (they/them), Owner & Principal Consultant at L3 Catalyst Group, is a coach, strategist, facilitator, and change agent applying the Process Consulting approach with anti-oppression and liberatory frameworks. Specializing in crisis and change leadership, they support brave and badass leaders and teams illuminate underlying issues, infuse learning, envision a just future, and walk a transformational path forward. Dee is committed to equitable systemic outcomes, healthy humans, and thriving teams. Dee serves on the board of their local Pride Center, is messily learning to practice meditation, and is always up for truth telling about oppression and living life in liberatory joy.
[Follow me on my website](https://l3catalystgroup.com/) [Follow me on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/L3CatalystGroup) [Follow me on LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/deannarolffs/)
### Related Articles
##### [ Liberatory Design • February 15, 2023 Liberatory Design Card Deck 3 min read](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/liberatory-design-card-deck)
##### [ brave • January 13, 2021 Welcome to Leadership & Learning Letters Launch 3 min read](https://l3catalystgroup.com/blog/welcome-to-leadership-learning-letters-launch)
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