One Ha' Penny, Two Ha' Penny...

Hot cross buns! I've always wanted to participate in the tradition of baking hot cross buns for Good Friday, so, when my Lawyers in Balance meditation group organized a reunion brunch for today, I decided that this was a fantastic opportunity. I had never eaten a hot cross bun before, and certainly had never baked them before, so I relied upon a recipe that I found online.

I think they turned out pretty well! Everyone at my brunch certainly liked them. I'll definitely make them again. I love baking: kneading dough with my hands, the smell of yeast, and watching the dough rise... It's so cool! I mean, who was the first human to figure out that yeast could be used to make bread rise? Wikipedia suggests that it may have been an accident. What providence!

Holy Thursday Mass at the National Shrine was very good last night. Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, presided. I liked his homily; of particular note, he was describing the most profound thing that a devout and well-educated person had ever learned--"Jesus loves me, this I know, because the Bible tells me so." The quote was so out of nowhere that it delighted me immensely. The choir and the organ were very dramatic.

My favorite part was at the end of the service, when the Eucharist was transferred to the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. The choir was singing alterating verses in Latin and English, and processed to the side chapel, which made the acoustics incredible. It's funny, because I always initially take umbrage at John 10, where Jesus calls us sheep. I'm not a sheep! I'm independent, I think for myself, I'm strong! But, as I, with the congregation, followed the Eucharist to the side chapel, not knowing exactly where to go, when to kneel, how long to pray, I realized that we are, in some sense, sheep. I ended up copying whatever the few sisters from the Missionaries of Charity were doing, frankly. (I figured, you could do worse than following women who belong to the order founded by Mother Teresa.) But, in light of the utter humanity of the moment, there was something beautiful in all of us, gathering together, none of us really knowing what we were doing, but pulling together to follow Jesus.

On that note, back to the Shrine for the Good Friday liturgy. Blessings.

Transaction Costs

During a discussion this morning in my Contracts class about efficient breaches, Pareto efficiency and the Coase theorem came up, leading to my professor to say the following about us lawyers:

We are walking transaction costs, so be careful what you say about transaction costs.

Ouch. That makes me feel nearly as indignant as my professor was about contract law being treated as a "second-class citizen" compared to tort law with regards to punitive damages.

Impact of the Downturn?

From a recent New York Times editorial, With the Downturn, It's Time to Rethink the Legal Profession:

The downturn will probably rein in salaries at the high end. [. . .] Lower pay should mean that associates will not need to work the grueling hours many have been forced to. And it will mean less pressure to go into private practice for law graduates who would rather do something else.

I disagree. I think the downturn will have the opposite effect: rather than lessening the pressure to go into private practice, it will increase the pressure to go into public interest and government jobs because they are the only options left--other than unemployment. What I've seen this year as a 1L has been a public interest summer internship market that is significantly more competitive than prior summers (according to my 2L and 3L friends).

Speaking of jobs, my own summer internship search has come to an end! I had mentioned a few weeks ago that I might be working for East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, but things have changed. After a very successful phone interview last week, I will be spending this summer in San Francisco interning with HomeBase, a non-profit, public policy law firm working on homelessness! I'm very excited about this opportunity, because it will help me to learn more about what it means to work for a non-profit while honing my research skills and working for a good cause. Plus, I'll be able to commute from Sunnyvale by Caltrain and Bart. While a long commute--1-1/2 hours each way, ouch--it will save me tons of money, which is an important factor when you're an unpaid intern living on a small public interest stipend. I'm also glad to be close to my family, whom I've missed very much while in D.C. this year.

Kite Festival

The Kite Festival at the Washington Monument was a little underwhelming because of the poor weather, but I still enjoyed walking around and people watching. Here are a few of my favorite photos from the day (or, check out the whole album here).

Implanted Word

I've been on retreat this week. Every semester, Campus Ministry offers a Prayer in Daily Life retreat, which I also made last semester. I was in a less stressed mental state this time around, which made for a peaceful and helpful week of prayer and spiritual direction. There was one experience in particular that I wanted to share from the retreat.

While I was praying with James 1:19-27, verse 21 stuck out to me. The NRSV refers to the "implanted word"; similarly, in the NAB we are told to "humbly welcome the word that has been planted in you and is able to save your souls." As I meditated on the phrase "implanted word" Lectio divina-style, an image popped into my head of a seed, representing God's word ("and, the Word was God"), implanted in my heart when I was baptized as an infant. Over time, that seed has sprouted and grown into a tree. The tree has wide, overarching branches. When the tree is well-tended, its leaves are full, and it provides much shade. In fact, the shade is so abundant and the tree is so strong that all of the weeds growing out of the heart--such as pride, sloth, and other sins--suffer from lack nutrients and wither away. Furthermore, the tree bears fruit that nourishes others and spreads seeds to other hearts. This is the implanted word to me. In this Lenten season, I pray that we might open our hearts to God the arborist. Amen.

Sauntering About Town

It's been 10 days since my last post. Rather than writing a really long post covering everything in minute detail (as I am wont to do), I thought I'd post 10 points summarizing the notable things that have happened as of late. Thus, in no particular order:

• There was a mouse nibbling a hole in my wall, who was quite cute but nonetheless had to be evicted (so to speak).
• I have been praying for my grandmother a lot these past couple of weeks.
• I went out to a bar for St. Patrick's Day for a little while, and discovered that watching college freshmen use fake IDs to get beer is at once bemusing, annoying, and sad.
  
• My ADX lil sis Sarah was in town last weekend, and we took advantage of the Sunday afternoon sunshine to go for a five-mile walk to and through Georgetown.
• I went for a hike on Theodore Roosevelt Island.
• I saw elephants walking the streets of D.C. after a Barnum & Bailey circus got out at the Verizon Center.
• My Contracts professor made me officially happy when he told us that, because the UCC has a provision against disclaiming good faith, “tort law has trumped contract law. I am officially sad.”
• The Terrapins made me angry... again.
• We played "Jurisdiction Jeopardy" in my International Law class.
• It is currently Student Appreciate Week at Georgetown Law, the highlight of which thus far has been fresh cotton candy.
  

Some little blossoms hint at the start of spring on Teddy Roosevelt Island.

Spring Break

This past week was my much-needed Spring Break. I discovered this week that I really do love the Bay Area. The weather is mild, the culture is thriving, the people are my friends and family. When I left for D.C., I figured that moving to the East Coast would solidify my love of the Bay Area, and it has. This is not to the detriment of my appreciation for D.C., and how glad I am to be living here for another two years. Rather, moving away has shed some light on the subtle blessings that I have enjoyed growing up in the Bay Area.

I spent Monday through Wednesday in Berkeley, which was fantastic. I went to Monday night meeting at ADX. It felt strange to not know half of the girls in the room. I got to have coffee with a lot of different friends, and I was glad to see that our conversations picked up where they last left off, a confirmation of true friendship. FHE at the Alumni House was a lot of fun, and delicious! I also got my Newman Hall fix--I went to Mass, I had dinner at the rectory, and went to Seekers. Seekers was so adorable for making me a sign! A bunch of us went out to Nations afterward, which was great. And, I got to hang out with Robert, who makes me smile so much. :-)

While in Berkeley, I also got a chance to visit East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, a non-profit that provides legal services to immigrants and refugees. I have an offer to intern with them this summer, which I will probably accept. Berkeley kids, you know that one door labeled "The Living Room" on the side of Trinity United Methodist (the church across the street from the RSF)? Well, that door leads to the basement of the church, where EBSC is located! What a small world. I'm still hoping to hear back from some other summer internships, but at least I have one opportunity lined up.

Outside of my visit to Berkeley, I spent my Spring Break in Sunnyvale with my family. It was a low-key visit, which was nice. I got some studying done, but, more importantly, I now feel sufficiently recharged to tackle the second half of the semester. (Finals start in 6 weeks, wow!) This break provided me a chance for a little introspection, since I was continually asked "How is law school?!" My answer is that law school is tough, but good. Last semester was a lot of trial and error, but I feel far more confident about where I'm going this semester. Hopefully, I'll be able to maintain a firm reliance upon God for my strength in these last four weeks of Lent, and last two months of my first year of law school.