Homecoming

Snow. Snow, snow, snow. Well, for the most part, it's over, and at least every other state knows how we feel. Yep, snow in all 50 states at the same time. Amazing! Washington saw snow like the city has never seen before, at least on record. The first day, the pure quiet of seeing empty streets covered in a single white layer was calming. You could walk across Connecticut Avenue, a major artery of a major city, and not see a single vehicle. You might, however, see skiers or snowboarders cruising downhill.

We went sledding, turned up the space heater, and reveled in days off class and home from work (sadly, it was the one time where working from home was NOT a benefit). By day 5 of the blizzard though, the once-clean snow turned gray and there was a general slushy disgruntled-ness among us. Still, the break from reality was welcome, and the ability to 'swim' in a pile of snow almost as tall as me was especially fun when followed by more hot chocolate.

Some photos below. Our homemade sleds weren't much, but some kind neighbors on the hill lent us theirs and together we carved out quite a nice sled path in Rock Creek Park. Back when the snow was still fun, that is. It's fading away now, and signs of spring have finally emerged, so back into season-changing we go. Next up: I will be complaining about the rain.

As I write, I'm heading back 'home' – to a place in Texas that I'll forever associate with happiness. Maybe it's a combination of the winter blues, school frustrations, and general feelings of inadequacy as a student, but being back in the classroom has been humbling. Every single day. I think I struggle the most with finding ways to connect with people – anyone – and feeling so frustrated when there simply is no common ground with many classmates. Maybe it's because I, too, am only half-committed to school – but somehow that lack of connection combined with feeling completely ill-prepared for my greater goals has translated to a general apathy. What's driving me now is only that I have tasks in front of me to complete, but I'm quickly losing sight of, and interest in, whatever the big picture is, or once was as I had imagined it.

So maybe going home will alleviate that, make me feel whole again, or serve as but a short reminder that there can be life after law school. I'm trying to get excited to think big again, but can't figure out why school, of all things, feels so much more stagnant than I had expected.