waiting for grades is like planning a wedding

I love weddings.  Most people who know me also know this.  Some know that I have been to approximately 30 weddings in the past 7 years.  That's a lot of presents, driving, and cake.

I appreciate the wedding day, but also, all of the stuff in a couple's life leading toward the wedding day.

For many, that day they will invite the largest number of their family, friends, and acquaintances to a single event in their lifetime.  And most have never done anything like that before.  Some have never been to a large event before attempting to host one.

Thus, in the months, weeks, days leading to the event, every decision, potential disturbance, or bit of good news turns into a life-altering emotion-filled moment.  Anyone who has hosted, been to, been in, or otherwise attached to a large-ish wedding knows what I mean.

Now, since this blog is about law school ...

Take those wedding-related emotions and try to apply them to the course of time law students spend waiting for letter grades each semester.

There is nothing the law student can do to affect the grade once s/he steps out of the exam, but the emotions of anticipating each grade to drop in the online portal (because it would just be too easy to post all of them at once...) are heart-pounding.

And, of course, based on academic status, the questions rolling through each student's mind vary:  "Will I keep my scholarship?"  "Where am I eligible to intern next semester?"  "Will I grade on to law review?"  "Will I be invited to an honor society?"  "Can I stay in SBA office?"  "Will I stay in law school?"

Even if the grades come back and they are better than anticipated, the agony of the wait is harrowing, the high emotion with each posted grade thrilling.

And so, we wait ....