Happy New Year

Just a quick post wishing everyone a prosperous new year.....

Kwanzaa

I wanted to begin to celebrate Kwanzaa last year. I remember learning about it in grammar school and in a book a few years back. I researched about it last year and I felt inspired. 

I feel that the message is beautiful. I wonder why not many people celebrate it. I don't celebrate it because I feel that I am black and have to but because I believe in the principles it represents. 

I am going to give a general overview of Kwanzaa's seven principles which is celebrated each of the seven days of Kwanzaa. Also the lighting of the Kinara. There are many more traditions and customs associated with Kwanzaa. I am giving a basic and simple overview.

Day 1 is Umoja which stands for Unity. We strive for and maintain unity in the family, community, nation and race. 

Day 2 is Kujichagulia which stands for self determination. To define ourselves, name ourselves, create for ourselves and speak for ourselves. 

Day 3 is Ujima which stands for Collective work and responsibility. To build and maintain our community together and make our brother's and sister's problems our problems and to solve them together.

Day 4 is Ujamaa which stands for cooperative economics. To build and maintain our own stores, shops and other businesses and to profit from them together. 

Day 5 is Nia which stands for Purpose. To make our collective vocation the building and develop if our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness. 

Day 6 is Kuumba which stands for creativity. To do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.

Day 7 Imani stands for faith. To believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle. 


Each day of Kwanzaa you light the candles on the Kinara. You have 3 red candles, 3 green candles and one black candle which sits in the middle. 

You light the black candle on the 1st day

You light the black and first red candle on Day 2

You light the black candle, 1st red candle and 1st green candle on Day 3

You light the black candle, 1st & 2nd red candles and the 1st green candle on Day 4. 

You light the black candle, 1st & 2nd red candles, & the 1st & 2nd green candles on Day 5. 

You light the black candle, all the red candles and the 1st & 2nd green candles on Day 6. 

You light all the candles on Day 7. 

Mutual Respect

Whoever said that you have to like someone or dislike someone on behalf of someone else is wrong. Whoever said that it was okay to become obsessed with superficial reasons to dislike someone is wrong. 

All I ask for is the respect I give out. My life is whole, I have enough love ones. I am not in search of more but if great people enter my life then great, if not, there is no great lost. 


Me holding anger and hatred for the next person holds only ME back. Hate consumes you and takes over your thoughts. There is so much that you can focus your energy on. I respect everyone I encounter whether you make my skin crawl or draw a smile on my face. 


I believe the key to happiness is peace of mind and positive energy. You receive what you give off. Nowadays the people in the limelight or with a few fans and followers think its great to talk down or belittle someone they feel they are above. You never know a person's life or aspirations by how many Facebook friends, twitter followers or the attire they wear. 


People get lost in the hoopla of social media, their image and how to get their next compliment. 


As long as you know who you are, there is no need for reassurance. There is no need to put the next person down. 


Respect me. That is all I ask. If I encounter you and you have disdain flowing in your blood towards me, don't dwell on it. Keep it moving. Don't take my hello or smile to be fake. Take it as my attitude towards life. 


There is just too much that is right in my life right now to be mad. 

Diversity in Law School

One of my law school friends felt that I needed to touch on this topic. I promised her I would write my thoughts today so here you go....

Yes. Law School is a culture shock. Me being African American, students in my classes have always looked like me, sound like me, dressed similar and had customs like mine.

In Law School I am truly a minority. I never walked through life and felt like the minority because in my schools, neighborhoods and jobs, there were plenty of people that look like me.

I stepped into orientation and realized I am not on the South Side of chicago anymore. I saw maybe 10-15  faces like mine. But I digress because that is not what is important. I came to get a law degree and thats what I am doing. I refuse to dwell on the issue of being a statistical figure. I am more than a small percentage of minorities allowed in. I deserve to be in Law School as well as all of my fellow minority class mates.

There are times where being a minority resurfaces and is thrown in my face. I had a young lady put some very degrading comments on "How to impersonate a black women". The impersonation used did not contain proper english, sounding very ignorant illiterate and stereotistical. It made me angry. I never want to be the victim not am I sensitive and on the fence about being a minority. But to be so insensitive can be sickening.

It has not been so bad. One of my closets friends is from law school does not look like me but its not a factor. I don't see my class mates as a race or different shades of skin color. It is hard when you have insensitive people who make broad generalizations about african americans in your presence but it does not hold me back. It does not affect me because their limitations from being ignorant and blinded is their problem not mine.

I don't see color, I see individuals. Yes, I joined the Black Law Student Association and I have an unspoken bond with the other black students but its just from the mutual respect and journey we share.

Being a minority in law school is not a handicap. I am proud of who I am but my skin color does not define me nor shape my experiences or success. You can stand up for yourself but don't allow being different hinder your success. Embrace your experiences, allow them to shape your outlook but look past the negative experiences.

1/6th of a Lawyer.......

I am back! 

Finals are over. The stress is gone. Break has began. Holidays are here. 


First semester of law school is an experience that cannot be put into words. I feel that I walked into Law School blind. Now at the end of December, I feel that I have on glasses. The glasses do not enable me to see clearly, its still blurry but I can see so much better than August 22nd. 


My first case briefs were atrocious to say the least. They were entirely too long and did not even contain any of the relevant facts, rules, issues or analysis. By October, I had taken my first midterm and cases were read within a matter of minutes instead of a few hours. 


Finals came, they went, am I scarred now? For sure. I feel as if finals period was an out of body experience. I never felt as if I studied enough but the final dates were definite not flexible. I could ask for more time. I showed up and gave it my all or what I understood to be my all. 


Now, all that I can do is wait. Once the last final took place, I felt liberated...for five minutes. Now I feel anxious and nervous. Fearing the inevitable. Will I flunk out, did i perform so much lower than expected? I don't now. Grades take time. Soooo much time. 


The waiting period is much more dreadful then finals period. I am supposed to be enjoying my break. I am partly but I am worrying about how did I perform, purchasing books and how to approach next semester to improve my abilities. 


I am whole, I have grown, and I am confident in my abilities now. Not enough advice could have prepared me for this experience but I would not go back. I value all that I have learned, the new friends I have made and the accomplishments I have attained. 

Friends?

I have never been a clique type of girl. I like to be friends with whom I please. I don't want a "friend" to dislike someone else and expect me to dislike them as well. I can be a great person to get to know but I find that my difference in lifetime creates an imaginary barrier. I can't jump up on a whim and go wherever. I have responsibilities and a family who needs me. 


My mistake has been that all of my friends are either single or have no children. No matter how cool a person may seem, the difference becomes so evident that the friendship begins to fade. I am on a new journey and have made many new friends. At first everything is pleasant, but after time true personalities show and the differences are highlighted. Where are the married with children women at? I need someone I can talk about how my husband is like my son or how my I had to do a science project with my son. 


I can gain friends instantaneous but it is hard to keep them. My schedule gets in the way, my mindset is different. I had to grow up very quickly and I matured at an early age. Luckily, my husband and son is the greatest companions a girl could ask for. So even though its nice to have friends to unwind with, I am not so lonely as to force myself into friendships that are valueless......

Brown Girl in the legal world: 1L....stands for LACK of sleep!

Brown Girl in the legal world: 1L....stands for LACK of sleep!: Law school isn't extremely hard. The work is not too hard to grasp. yes, in the beginning the work is different, confusing and seems to be w...

1L....stands for LACK of sleep!

Law school isn't extremely hard. The work is not too hard to grasp. yes, in the beginning the work is different, confusing and seems to be written in a foreign language. After a month or maybe two, it is not confusing. You can grasp the concepts just fine but your sleep schedule disappears. I find myself taking naps. I have never taken naps in the day time. Now I look forward to my day time naps. They always tell you law school is a lot of work but that has to be the understatement of the century.


My schedule: Wake up, get my son ready for school, catch the bus, sit in class, study in the library, go to my next class, go home and prepare for the next day, go to sleep at some point and start over all over again. But...that is only if there is no meetings or events that requires my presence. Don't let me get to the importance of networking, which forces me to choose, networking or sleeping.....I have chosen networking and the connections I have made have been great but my sleep is near obsolete. 


My time is occupied for every minute of my day. That is what makes Law School so demanding. Everything has to be written down, and followed. I have a million planners, dry erase boards and calendars. Nothing is absolute. I can plan every second of my day but I will forget something until the last minute or hit with a last minute request which ruins my schedule.


Once upon a time I was a morning person. I got up at 6:30- 7:00 a.m. and would be sleep no later than 11:00 p.m. Now I have discovered insomnia, late nights up finishing my readings because I don't get home until late and must cook dinner and get my son ready for school and talk to my husband to stay married. Law School takes hard work and dedication which I have to give but overall it is time consuming and a huge mystery.


I need SLEEP!

Natural hair social

Not at all sure about going alone but so happy that I decided to go. Treasure our tresses was such a wonderful event. The natural hair community has been nothing short of inviting and warm. No one is judging and everyone is showing love. I arrived alone and met at least twenty people who took to me right away. I was asked to take pictures and about my hair care regimen. I was unsure about my hair as I did not take the time to do it. Instead I run in some Shea moisture curl enhancing smoothie and left. I love to meet other naturals to share my story and to hear others as well as hive tips of what have and haven't worked for me.

Definitely a successful and great evening......

1L....I am not about that life!

My very first semester doing what I always knew I would...becoming an attorney. Six years old with the dream of being an attorney who does hair on the side, now twenty years later, my dreams are attainable. I began a little over two months ago, I began confused and excited. Now I understand more and much more comfortable but so overwhelmed. My schedule is non existent just like my social life. Juggling my son, husband, school work, and the different organizations I am involved in, has been nothing short of time consuming. It is not a matter of law school being hard, it just requires hard work. Keeping up with readings, outlines and my schedule of things to get done has made my life so much less appeasing. 


But with all that said, I am even more excited to have start this journey and so much closer to living my dream! 


Goodnight until I find another free Saturday night to blog......