Tomorrow, tomorrow

Tomorrow is the first day of Orientation, the first of four days. Introductions, new professors, and library tours....all in a/c that is too cold and dressed in 'business casual' - however one chooses to interpret that standard.

In our required Orientation reading, the book said that a new law student must think of law school as the beginning of his professional life. I'm entering into a profession, not just another academic circle (for which there was a pretty 735 dollar book price tag)

I entered law school for a variety of reasons. 1) It is a fascinating area of human thought and practice. It puts an order to our world and tries to make some orderly sense out of it. 2) I majored in Ancient Greek and Latin and I did not want to pursue my graduate work in that just yet. I also do not want to teach yet either. So what else am I going to do with a degree in Classics? 3) Family tradition - well, not quite. It's a family adage that lawyers, doctors, and engineers will always have jobs - and status. My grandmother's family had three judges, and two lawyers at the time of World War II - and her father was an engineer. So it's partly a family tradition. and partly because it's what my family expects.

I also entered law school because in some ways, the thought process behind it is very similar to why I studied languages in the first place. Let me see if I can formulate it properly,

I speak English, French and Italian (these last two pretty fluently) and I've studied Latin and Ancient Greek and Arabic and Hebrew. I can hold a simple conversation in these last two, but I want to advance my knowledge much further. I know that whatever the American or British media reports, the Italian or French media have a rather different perspective and they give a different slant to things. I have a very small window into the Israeli and Arabic worlds - all because of my language skills. As I see it, one could and should know the history of the world backwards and forwards, one can understand the culture perfectly and understand the various traditions and belief systems without problem. The major flaw in this, is that without knowledge of the language of the particular society or culture, you are missing vital clues. Languages offer a unique and vast window into a world. They can only open more and more doors.

If I cannot understand the language - I will miss crucial aspects of that culture and society. Certain crucial nuances in attitudes and beliefs that can be and usually are subtly expressed in everyday languages. The 'vous' in formal French, the 'lei' in formal Italian. Formal 'vous' to talk to another person is open yet reserved - maintaining a little distance. Now, the 'lei' in Italian for the formal you has a different nuance. There is more distance and more reserve. See. Nuance matters.

Same thing in law - different words used to express different ideas are crucial. And may make all the difference in a lawsuit or case. Or exam.

I want to use the law to open doors that I found after language opened the first doors. That is my goal. That is why I've chosen this profession.

I'm pretty sure it was the right one. All I can do is wait and see.