My parents were both teachers at a small college. My mom taught nursing and served as the school nurse. Yet, I remember that she made special desserts for each holiday. For example, she made an Easter Bunny cake complete with a basket full of eggs one spring. I’m not sure why this stands out so much except for the fact that, years later, I remember feeling like I failed my kids by not having time to do something similar. Looking back now, I can see that maybe cake decorating for her was like chain maille for me; a crafty way to relax, but more edible.

Several years ago, I was working nights for a police department and then coming home to homeschool our boys. During that time, there was no balance in my life at all. In fact, I don’t recall much about that time except projects I completed for work. Yet, I know that I was still trying to fill all my roles without admitting that I needed help. Since then, I have come to believe that work-life balance is a myth. Perhaps some people are able to do a better job of juggling, but the reality is that sometimes something is going to get dropped. Watch the video for my thoughts:

Law school is a full-time job–maybe it is more than a full-time job. For students without families, it can be a struggle. Students with families face a greater challenge as they try to meet the demands. I think if we are willing to admit that some things may be lost in order to gain our goal of completing law school, we will all be happier because we will be able to choose what things are most important and what things we are willing to drop.

See more on the Video Per Day Experiment in my introductory post.