let the light shine ya'll!!!

My life is a load of chaos right now! Just when I felt like I was being burried under a load of misery the sunlight broke through. Funny enough, it didn't just break through with a ray or two, those clouds parted and DAMN! Things are good. No, things are GREAT.

My mom called me Monday with the news that I got my first law school acceptance letter. I was pretty excited. I had these pipe dreams that these wonderful schools would be knocking on my door and begging me to attend, boy was I wrong. I floated through school. Going from thing to thing, rarely giving anything even a fourth of my effort. But I made it. I got my bachelor's degree and honestly, it's hard for me to even believe people who say it's too difficult not to. I juggled one if not two jobs the entire time I was in school, paid all my own bills, and had a slew of personal "issues". I graduated in four years and didn't even skate by with the minimum GPA or requirements. I had a major and a minor, was on an athletic team, editor of the paper, I worked, I lived on my own, I had friends and a boyfriend. I really think the only excuse is having a family, kids and such, I couldn't have imagined juggling that. Anyway enough tooting my own horn now, back to the now. I realized because I didnt have an insanely good GPA and I was working and hardly studying for the LSAT, I wasn't going to be able to get into the best school. USD and Irvine were my top picks. I was dying to go. I got rejected from both, within one week. I was heartbroken. So when my backup school accepted me, I accepted it without reservation. A juris doctorate is a degree, no matter where you go. You learn the same, you take the same bar exam. So I've decided to excel, I've decided to go to a school that may not be on top, but it's a law school, an American Bar Association accredited law school.

Wednesday I got more good news. Another school had accepted me. Talk about things looking up! I made 2 appointments, one at each school, to visit and talk about their programs and such. I went to the first, at Thomas Jefferson School of Law and had the BEST chat with the dean of admissions. I loved him and BOY did he love me. He said the minute he finished my personal statement he knew he had to have me at his school. He said he believes I'll excel and really become a leader. Then, he handed me a letter.

oh

my

god

They have awarded me a $54,000 scholarship. The Jefferson Scholarship. The largest scholarship the school offers.

HOLY SHIT!!!!!

I was SO excited. The following day I went to California Western School of Law. The school is more beautiful, slightly more prestigious, a bit bigger. It swept me off my feet. But it was lacking. It's a big pond, there, I will be a teeny tiny little fish. At Jefferson I'll be the big fish in the medium sized pond. Jefferson is building a new campus and who knows, maybe they'll sweep me off my feet too.

So for once in my life I've decided to put my pride and sense of entitlement and such aside. (I know I sound like the biggest brat in the world, but it's just how I am) I don't care what others thing about this one, I'm happy. I'll be less in debt in the end, and in the end there will still be a JD after my name.

Holy fuck,

Amanda Pollard, JD

YEEEEEEEE! Or Amanda something else, JD, whatevs.

So that's it, that's my decision. As of today I am a student at Thomas Jefferson School of Law and the recipient of their highest awarded scholarship.

I'm sort of beaming.