Something To Be Proud Of

After three and a half of the most stressful months of my life, juggling ten-hour workdays and classes that took place long after I should have been in bed, I made it through my first set of law school finals!! My first semester was far from anything that could remotely be considered "fun." In fact, a more accurate description would be "torture," "hell," or "miserable beyond belief." Nevertheless, I made it out the other side with only minimal emotional damage.

I have never spent so much time or effort reading and studying in all of my academic career as I did in three and a half months of law school. Despite all of that studying, when my grades came in, all I had to show for my effort was my lowest GPA ever. They say that when you go to law school, you need to reevaluate your standards. Well "they" are right. You're in an environment where everyone is used to getting As with minimal effort and every single one of your classmates was at the top of their class. It's just common sense that most of those people will now become only "average" in the new environment, or {gulp} fall to the bottom of the class. Of course none of us want to be that person, but the harsh reality is that, despite our best efforts, the majority of us will end up there.

The learning curve of the first semester was the steepest I've ever encountered. That's appropriate, since it's also the semester in which I've learned the most. I don't think I've learned as much in any of my pre-law school years as I have in only one semester of law school. The material itself is interesting, but it also applies to practical situations in everyday life in a way that no other academic subject I've studied has.

While I was unhappy with my first-semester GPA, I have spent the following weeks trying to convince myself that I should be proud of my efforts. If nothing else, I should be proud of the fact that I didn't actually fail anything, especially considering that I struggled to stay awake in my late-night classes!! I am proud of myself for that. I'm also proud of myself for actually doing every single reading assignment! There were a lot of times in undergrad where I blew off my homework, because I didn't really need to do it to stay on the Dean's list. The ease of keeping up good grades made me lazy and complacent. I can honestly say that I've worked harder this semester than ever before in an academic environment. I'm proud of myself for keeping my integrity and kindheartedness intact in such a high-pressured and competitive environment. Many of my classmates did not display these qualities, choosing instead to become the worst possible versions of themselves (or maybe they're just THAT terrible anyway). Finally, I'm proud of myself for following through on the dream I've had since seventh grade. Although it's harder than I ever imagined it would be, every day I spend reading and trying to figure out WTF is going on in the cases I'm assigned is one day closer to reaching the goal I set for myself over a decade ago.

So here's to 2016: another year of hard work, and another year closer to reaching my goal!