The Red Velvet Lawyer

I Love Them to Pieces I am wrapping up my third semester as a Clinical Professor of Law teaching at the Qatar University College of Law in Doha, Qatar. I did not anticipate the challenge of teaching undergraduate law students while also addressing the language and cultural gaps between us. Those challenges have made me a better and more supportive teacher. I am so impressed with the students here and their effort to complete my demanding Legal Research and Writing course. Last week, I shared with them four Facebook posts I had made about them over the second half of the semester. I don't think they  get much praise like this. It really lit them up. During Week 11 of the semester, I wrote: This is the moment in the semester when all the work of the professor and the students begins to pay off in very clear ways. Students become self-sufficient learners. I love it.   My students are showing up at office hours to work on the drafts of their memo...

Marking Time with A Marble a Week My Mom, Jo Ann Young, died of colon cancer in October 1997.  I was 43 years old.  She was 61. This photo of us together was taken shortly before her diagnosis. Shortly after her death, I filled a round glass vase with glass marbles.  Each marble represented one week of my life if I lived only to the age of 61.  I started with about 220 marbles. Each week, I would throw one of the marbles into my garden. I was making a symbolic promise to myself to live my life at a run and with purpose, in loving memory of my Mom.   When, I celebrated my 60th birthday, I was down to about 10 marbles.  I got my job offer for the Doha gig and threw the last of the marbles into the garden as an act of making way, moving on, and living larger. I was now living longer than my Mom had lived.   I remember Mom sitting at the kitchen table, just months away from her final days. She said she wanted to visit Hong Kong. My head...

Goal Setting Words for 2017 When I announced that I planned to move to Qatar, I got one or the other responses.  Nothing in between.  The first response reflected fear: " I could never do that."  The second response looked beyond fear: "What a great adventure!" In truth, how many 61-year old women sell all their stuff and move to an Arab country?  Admittedly, not many. But, never in that process -- something I blogged about in my 2015 "Countdown to Qatar" series -- was I afraid of the choice I was making.  In fact, I was running towards that new life.  Running. At one point -- in the selling, moving, packing, storing, and pitching process -- I looked at my personal assistant, Brenda , and said: " All I have to do is just get there!"  Just get through the chaos of transition. Get there.  Everything would be fine. Better, in fact. Much better. And, I was right. The theme of this post is finding three words that remind me of...

In Search of Goal Setting Words for 2017 Starting in 2014, I began picking three words to remind me of my goals for the year.  Chris Brogan gave me the idea.   Here is his post on the topic.  In 2014 , I picked:  Robin, launch, and wealth. In 2015 , I picked:  Well-being, manifestation, and love.  Last year, I must have completely forgotten about the goal-setting exercise in the midst of my hectic transition to Qatar. But, now that I am settled and content in my new location, it is time to find three new words for 2017. I first though about fierce , physical , and fire .   These words reflected my response to the Trump election, but also recognized my commitment to health and well-being.  This week, I started my 19th consecutive week of fitness training. My friend, Heidi, and I meet at 6:30 a.m. four times a week. I swim for 20 or 30 minutes in a 16 meter pool.  She runs.  Then, we lift for anoth...

My Facebook feed keeps showing me photos from a year ago: My first day in Qatar on August 15, 2015, jet lag clearly present. My shopping trips with friends as I began housekeeping in my Porto Arabia Tower apartment. Delicious meals at the restaurants featuring a wide variety of international foods. The onboarding process at Qatar University for new faculty. Steamy nights exploring the souk. Some sight-seeing trips in the blistering evening heat. Exploring fancy spas. Morning walks on the harbor with West Bay skyscrapers visible in the distance. Dressing up for the law school's reception at the Ritz Carlton. I am happy and curious in all these photos.  I look at those photos and feel grateful that I am through that demanding transition process.  Doha is now thoroughly my home.  I have a new apartment in Qanat Quatier, a...

 Peace Be With Us All This article , Principles and Practices of Peace and Conflict Resolution in Islam , provides a very interesting synthesis of the role peace plays in the Muslim community.  It also discusses the role of conflict resolution in Muslim cultures, with a focus on Morocco. The author, Claudia Maffettone is a conflict resolution practitioner and a certified mediator. She trained the New York Peace Institute, Harvard Law School, the New York City Bar, Soliya and the International Institute for Restorative Practices. I have suggested that she present this synthesis at the next conference of the ABA Section on Dispute Resolution.  I think my colleagues would find it valuable.  

Another New Tribe Part of my transition as a new resident of the Arabian Gulf region involves finding new tribes to join and help lead.   In March 2016 , I talked about the ADR tribes that I’ve found in Dubai and Doha.  I found another tribe that reflects my new place in the world. At the end of May, I attended the Global Legal Skills Conference in Verona, Italy at the University of Verona's Facolta Giurisprudenza.  Last year, I attended this conference for the first time.  I came back for the reason that the folks organizing and attending this conference are highly dedicated professors of law from all over the world who want to learn how better to teach law across cultures and across languages.    In other words, they are process people – my type of people.  Mediators often say that if the process is good, the outcome will be just fine, too.   So, if we continue to explore skillful ways of teaching student...

Back in the Middle with You:  Re-Joining my U.S. ADR Tribe In early April 2016, after a gap of several years, I finally joined an old tribe of ADR scholars, trainers, and practitioners at the annual conference, this year in New York, sponsored by the American Bar Association’s Section of Dispute Resolution . This ABA tribe claims my heart. These are great folks doing interesting and world-altering work. I love being among them. In my last post , I talked about several new tribes that reflect my transition to a new life in Doha, Qatar as a law professor. My new Arabian Gulf ADR tribes are important to my desire to scale-up my ADR practice and training. Yet, the anchor for my work has always been my old ABA tribe. I have tried to serve it in several ways: Member, Standing Committee on Ethical Guidance for Mediators (2006-2011). Co-Chair, Mediator Ethical Opinions Database Sub-Committee of the Standing Committee on Ethical Guidance for Mediators ...