Patti's Comments: I find this article rather funny. This lawyer wants a simpler life and in an a simple but profound act he burns his degree to start the new life. This reminded me of my similar simple act years ago.
Let me put this in perspective. I love my law degree (I am getting it re-issued with MSU on it as now my law school DCL has merged with my true love Michigan State University). I also love my vocation as an advocate for people with disabilities of all ages and their families.
I also love books. However, I never loved the dry, boring and sometimes overly competitive aspects of the law. My simple act was at a party celebrating the end of law school. I burned a “horn book” (a book, usually in a green cover, written by the best law professors on a topic of law). I even have a picture of this someplace. It was a simple, yet profound act for me. It has reminded me that I love books that tell an important story, take me away or inspire me. Horn books rarely do that.
I also love the practice of law as it allows me to meet important folks, help them tell their stories, and to use their real life experiences to inspire others and to improve the law and public policy for people with disabilities of all ages and their families. It has not really lead to a simpler life for me (at least not one that this Harvard educated lawyer seems to be searching for) but it has lead to a rewarding, purpose driven and fulfilled professional life.
My wish for you all is that you find a simple yet profound act that allows you to find rewarding outcome. I am glad to see that folks are looking for more than the traditional example of a successful professional life. I hope this lawyer finds what he is searching for...
From ABA Journal: (click for entire article)
Ever want to ditch the rat race? Burn your diploma and take a vow of simplicity?
If you thought about it, but could never quite muster the courage to strike a match, you can live vicariously through "Jack," a Washington, D.C., a 30-something lawyer who announced on his blog in June that he is giving up his $300,000-plus annual salary and opting for a simpler life.
In Adventures in Voluntary Simplicity, Jack blogs about his excesses and exit strategies. Then on Oct. 27, he took a key symbolic step in that direction. He burned his Harvard law diploma and posted a video on YouTube for all the world to bear witness.
"I’ve been thinking about doing this, in one way or another, for a while now. But I was never really sure if I would be doing it for the right reasons. Not to mention how silly it sounded whenever I brought it up to people. But this weekend it all came together: the weather was beautiful, the trails were inviting and freedom seemed just around the corner. So I went for it," Jack writes.
"This is NOT a knock against Harvard. Or a calculated criticism of legal education. Or even a rejection of elitism, per se. Sometimes you just need to say goodbye to your past in order to move forward."
In the end, he concludes, "it was just a piece of paper."
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