Day Two (too)

For the past few days, the clouds have been ominously waiting in the sky. Each afternoon, I go out expecting an imminent downpour. The rain, however, refuses to come and the air continues to stay unsatisfyingly damp and sticky. My umbrella stays unused and my rain jacket stays in my drawer. I can’t wait for rain, but I guess I’ll have to wait a few more days.

After a challenging reading last night, I was happy to come into class and review the material. Luke guided us through each court case and outlined the facts and arguments of each paragraph. He frequently stopped to ask intriguing questions and allowed each person to voice their own opinion. The material alone is interesting, but the way Luke conducts the class allows for it to be a much more interactive experience.

Upon reviewing the cases, I was pleased to discover that I was able to grasp the majority of the concepts outlined in each one. Yesterday, I was concerned that I was missing some information because the reading material was extremely dense and difficult to understand. It seemed as though the author wrote ten words where only one was necessary. My concerns, however, were in vain because I seemed to sufficiently understand the material.

After what seemed like only an hour of review, it was already time for lunch.  After again being pleasantly surprised by the dining hall food, I met up with one of my suite mates and we planned out the events we wanted to go to this week. We fantasized about going to super amazing events but then got a reality check when we saw the prices. We did, however, discover some great and inexpensive outings to go on. Tomorrow, I am planning on going to Soho and I’ll be going to the Met on Friday. Later on, I’ll be seeing Potted Potter and hopefully the Show of Mormon! I know that I will have a lot to manage in the weeks ahead, but I’m prepared for the challenge.

After lunch, we headed back to class and watched two very fascinating movies about the Constitution. In the first film, students had the opportunity to visit two Supreme Court justices who answered questions that these students had. The most interesting questions involved the justices’ opinion on their morals in regards to the decisions that they were forced to make with the Constitution. The justices immediately said that they placed the laws over their moral opinions. I know that it would be very challenging for me to do this and I admire the Justices’ respect for the law.

After the movies, class was over and Simon, Margaret and I headed to my dorm room to get an early start on homework. The readings today were much easier because they were written more easily. I finally feel as though I am starting to get used to my daily routine at Columbia. Soon it will feel like my second home!