I was reminded this week as I sat in class that some day I will be a lawyer with real clients.  A sobering thought really.  With all of the hustle and bustle of everyday life law school sometimes becomes like a second job.  But the more I began to reflect the more I began to realize that this is just temporary.

Law school is tiresome, difficult, time consuming … and great.  But it is just that, school.  It is a means to and end.  It is important to remember that in three years (or a little longer) you will no longer be a student but a lawyer.  No longer will your arguments and judicial philosophies be mere academic exercises; they will have real consequences for real people.  The things we will do as lawyers will have (sometimes extraordinary) impact on the lives of others.

It is important to remember that we should be learning more than just what it takes to pass an exam or give a professor what she wants to hear.  We should be learning how to apply the principles we are learning to real-life situations.  We should be cognizant of the fact that our preparedness and approach to legal issues will have the potential to change the course of a person’s life, perhaps even the course of the nation.  A very sobering thought indeed.

So the next time you are sitting in class and feel the urge to just “zone out”, remember that your lack of attention could affect someone’s life someday.  Keep your eye on the real goal and hang in there for the long haul.  God Bless and have a great day.