Tansi Nîtôtemtik!
As a parent I often find myself saying “the days are long, but the years are short”.[1] I feel the same way about law school. There are some days that feel like they have been extended by a hundred years. However, reflecting back on my law school “career” I see how quickly the time has flown by. So, in closing my final post for ReconciliACTION YEG, I wanted to provide you with my own personal recipe for gratitude.
The Ingredients:
Firstly, there is immense humility. Knowing that this year was a success because of the incredible team that ReconciliACTION YEG has truly been is the most humbling feeling. It has been an experience like no other to be the team lead for this incredible blog! Although I felt like we missed the boat on the chance to earn another Clawbie for 2022-2023, the fact is our team was an instrumental part of why we were inducted into the Clawbie Hall of Fame in 2021![2] Any good recipe needs a main ingredient, and for this recipe of gratitude, I’d say a good portion of humility is a staple.
However, our blog’s success would not have been possible without the dedication, talent, and the hard work from each team member. Each of these ingredients add depth, body and flavor to my recipe of gratitude, and should be added without reservation. In fact, if it wasn’t for the teams that had come before us, who dedicated their time and attention to producing an amazing blog, there would not have been a reason for ReconciliACTION to be inducted into the Clawbie hall of fame.
The talent that came together for this year’s team continues to astound me. And, just like any excellent recipe, there is always one shining ingredient that makes the outcome just pop. For my recipe of gratitude, the talent within this year’s team is that very ingredient. Without each of our unique perspectives and talents, I know this year’s blog would have been very different.
Many recipes have a binding ingredient, like eggs. For my recipe of gratitude, the binding ingredient is hard work. Without it the blog would have fallen apart. Simply put: without the hard work of every team member: Liz, Hero, Casey, Gavin, Amy, and myself, ReconciliACTION would not have crumbled under the weight of challenging, yet necessary conversations.
The Method:
Any baker knows that the right ingredients are only half the equation of producing an excellent product. You must combine the ingredients in the right way, for it to have the best chance of turning out well. For this recipe of gratitude, the method means I must apply what I have learnt throughout my time with ReconciliACTION, to my incoming career.
Whether you whisk, beat, stir, fold, or toss your ingredients will have a very different outcome on your desired product. For me, combining these ingredients is a lot like folding: a gentle technique meant to honor each of the respective ingredients. Any delicate recipe that calls for a folding technique often is accompanied with the feeling of uncertainty and excitement. Folding it too much may cause it to become tough, dense or even flop; yet folding it too little will fail to produce a light, airy and desirable texture. For me, this new chapter is no different. Knowing it is time to fold my various law school experiences into something spectacular and unique is unnerving, yet exciting! However, I know that I have been properly equipped to apply the lessons I have learnt to my future legal practice.
The Result:
Once a recipe has been measured, combined and baked, the much anticipated result will stare you down, while you wait until the right time to indulge in it. While a recipe that has been assembled with great care will result in a tasty treat, every great creation is better shared with friends. You, dear reader, are the people we want to share our creation with because if it wasn’t for you, we would have no audience; we would be talking into the great unknown. Our delicious creation presented through our perspectives, thoughts, and commentary would be lost. It is with this, that I thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to indulge in our posts; to enjoy the fruits of our labor.
With that, my recipe of gratitude is complete. Thank you dear Reader for joining us during this chapter of ReconciliACTION. Don’t forget though, just because these writers are done this year, a new and incredible team will lead you through a whole new year of posts starting in September! Be sure to subscribe to our blog so you don’t miss a post!
In closing, this week’s artwork is a photo mosaic I put together using all of the images we have utilized over the course of the academic year. I chose the word “truth” because of this year’s overarching theme: the truth before reconciliation. I hope this year has been as educational and informative for you, as it has been for me.
Hiy Hiy!
Amanda & Team ReconciliACTION YEG
Image created by Amanda Wagar through photo mosaic software with images from the 2021-2022 ReconciliACTION posts.
[1] Good Reads, “Quotable Quotes” (2022), online: Good Reads <https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/239043-the-days-are-long-but-the-years-are-short#:~:text=Quote%20by%20Gretchen%20Rubin%3A%20%E2%80%9CThe,but%20the%20years%20are%20short.%E2%80%9D>.
[2] Clawbies, “2021 Clawbies: Canadian Law Blog Awards” (December 31, 2021), online: Clawbies <https://www.clawbies.ca/2021-clawbies-canadian-law-blog-awards/>.