If you had told me during my 1L year that I would leave Boston for a long weekend in New York City, right in the middle of my 2L fall semester, to see Harry Styles at Madison Square Garden, I probably would have laughed. Not because I wouldn’t have wanted to go (full disclosure, I was a hardcore Directioner and am now a huge Harry fan), but because the thought of taking an entire weekend away from law school would have sent me into a spiral. But a few weekends ago, that’s exactly what I did. And it was one of the best decisions I’ve made this semester.
Law school is hard. 1L, from my understanding, is the hardest. Between learning how to brief cases, figuring out how to read the law, networking and recruiting, and constantly feeling like you’re not doing enough, it’s easy to let law school become your entire personality.
Don’t get me wrong, I loved so many parts of my 1L experience. I made wonderful friends and grew tremendously as a person and a student. But somewhere between the endless reading assignments and the pressure of figuring everything out, I oftentimes forgot that I was allowed to have a life outside of law school.
Enter 2L year. I don’t want to give anyone the impression that 2L is easy. My classes are still challenging and my schedule is still as busy as ever. But something has changed: I’ve gotten a lot better at recognizing that being a good law student doesn’t require spending every free minute being a law student.
This year, I’ve been making a conscious effort to prioritize the things that make me happy. I’ve been taking more barre classes and spending more time with my friends and loved ones. And perhaps most importantly, I’ve learned that it’s okay to close my laptop and be present in those plans.
When the opportunity arose to spend a long weekend in New York City and see Harry Styles perform at Madison Square Garden, I knew I couldn’t pass it up. As a 1L, I probably would have immediately started calculating how many hours of reading I’d miss. This time, I decided that the memories would be worth a few extra hours of studying when I got home. And I could not have been more right.
The concert was, without exaggeration, one of the most incredible experiences of my life. Not only was I seeing Harry Styles perform at Madison Square Garden, but I was in the pit, standing about six feet away from him. SIX FEET! After spending so much of the past year staring at casebooks and my laptop screen, suddenly being close enough to see Harry Styles without needing to look at the giant screens felt like a pretty incredible change of scenery.
The energy in the arena was unbelievable. Between the music, the lights, the crowd singing along to every word, and the fact that Harry Styles was performing just a few feet in front of me, the entire night felt surreal. I sang, danced, and enjoyed every second of it. It was one of those experiences where you know, even while it’s happening, that you’re going to remember it forever.
And perhaps the best part? For those few hours, I did not think about law school once; not about my Evidence reading and not about my assignments for the following week. I was completely present, enjoying an experience that had absolutely nothing to do with being a law student.
The rest of the weekend was just as special. I got to enjoy New York City, spend quality time with people I love, and take a break from my usual routine. It reminded me that some of the best memories happen when you allow yourself to step away from your responsibilities for a little while and just have fun.
When I returned to Boston, my assignments were still waiting for me. But instead of regretting the time away, I felt happier, refreshed, and ready to jump back into my routine. I had traded a few days of studying for a weekend full of memories, and I would make that trade again in a heartbeat.
Balance doesn’t necessarily mean having equal amounts of time for everything. Sometimes it means recognizing when school needs to come first, and other times it means recognizing that a barre class, dinner with friends, or a Harry Styles concert deserves a spot on your calendar, too.
To any 1Ls reading this who currently feel like their lives revolve around casebooks, cold calls, and outlines: I promise it gets better. You get faster at reading, more comfortable in class, and more confident in your ability to manage everything. But perhaps even more importantly, you start to realize that law school is just one part of your life, even when it feels like the biggest part.
I’m still figuring out how to balance everything, but for now, I’m grateful that my 2L year has given me the confidence to say yes to more of the things I love. After all, my readings will still be there on Monday, but pit tickets to Harry Styles at Madison Square Garden? That’s worth closing a casebook for.
Rebecca Carcieri is a second-year student at BC Law. Contact her at carcierr@bc.edu. Photo: erintheredmc, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
