Seasoned

I will remember Spring Break 2010 as the week I spent hammering out the rough draft of my upper level writing requirement, over 30 pages worth of text and footnotes. This paper marks the first time in my life that I have composed a work of this length or importance without first writing out my thoughts by hand. I hope my professor likes the result. My eyeballs still feel like they are bouncing around inside my skull from staring at my laptop screen so much this week. It took me three tries over three days before I regained the equilibrium to sit down and type this blog entry.

The students on law review here would have no sympathy for me, I'm sure. They have to write at least two papers, one for the graduation requirement and a different one for the law review. In addition, they are constantly editing the footnotes and text of articles submitted by scholars for publication in our law review. While it is a great honor to be on law review, I do not know if I would be happy having to do that sort of work all the time, even if I did qualify for the job- but more power to them. . .

We had a patch of warm weather earlier this week- finally a taste of spring from the (unusually cold, as the natives tell me) Panhandle winter. The warm air on my short sleeved arms, the sight of flowers in bloom, bees flying around, and the smell of the green plants reminded me of where I was this time two years ago.

Two years ago, spring was also starting in Cullowhee, NC. I was a graduate student at Western Carolina University, trying to decide what to do with my future. By mid-March I had already made up my mind that I was going to law school in the fall, I just did not know where, yet. Having been accepted to three or four schools, I became comfortable with a choice in my home state of North Carolina.

Then the acceptance to Florida State Law came through. Interestingly enough, I did not learn that I had been accepted via a letter in the mail. Rather, I received a cryptic email from the Student Affairs Office at Florida State Law encouraging me to complete a scholarship application for admitted students. I immediately called the Admissions Office and told the nice lady on the phone about the email. She checked the computer system and confirmed that I had indeed been accepted. The official letter was probably already in the mail, she said. I thanked her very much.

The next phone call was to my parents. I remember standing on the breezeway outside Hunter Library, feeling the warm sunlight on my arms as I made the call. They did not answer, so I left a message saying that I had been accepted to Florida State, and that this school just might knock off my first choice in North Carolina. I wanted them to call me back with their opinion.

That evening, I got back in touch with my parents, and I had a nice conversation with them again while I stood on the breezeway outside the library. It was a good moment, talking to my parents about a significant accomplishment, discussing options that were only great ones.

My parents, much like myself, were anti-debt in their views on where I should attend school. The cost of out-of-state tuition at Florida State Law bothered me and was the only reason I would choose not to go there. To my surprise, without much hesitation both my parents told me to go to Florida State- “but only if you are sure you want to be a lawyer,” they said.

At that time, I was not absolutely sure I wanted to be a lawyer, and I spent the next weeks talking to over 50 people about where I should go to law school. Less debt meant that I was not locking myself into a legal career, and the school in North Carolina had offered me a scholarship package where I could graduate with no debt.

Ultimately, of course, I decided to go to Florida State. I do not regret the decision at all. That spring and summer prior to enrolling, I tried to imagine what it would be like. I looked at maps of Tallahassee and saw Jefferson Street, where the law school is located. I looked at pictures of the students and professors on the web site. I did not have time to make a personal trip to the school, and I actually showed up in Tallahassee only the weekend before classes began.

But I’ve been in Tallahassee ever since. I like it here, and with the warm weather this week it occurred to me that I am now a “seasoned” law school student. Two years ago at this time I was imagining what my life would be like in two years, if I would be enjoying law school and if it would change me significantly. The answer to the first question is yes, I am enjoying law school. As for the second question, law school has changed me somewhat, though not in a major way. At this point I feel like law school is giving me a new and practical body of knowledge to use in this world. It has also given me a new lens with which to view the world- though by no means do I feel like I must wear that lens all the time.

Two years ago I was trying to imagine some of the things I would be doing in law school. Specifically, the answer right now is: Taking the Multi-state Professional Responsibility Exam as part of being admitted to the Florida Bar, and working on a 30 page paper to meet a requirement for graduation. I am a seasoned law school student.

Universal Health Care Now,

Nathan Marshburn