Lawyers Appreciate Community

My friend Stephanie West Allen, who publishes Idealawg, one of my favorite stops on the internet, together with Julie Fleming Brown of Life at the Bar, came up with Lawyers Appreciate..., an inspired way to close out the year by creating the space for a chorus of voices around the legal blogosphere to express their appreciation.

I was tagged by another friend, Bob Ambrogi. Although it's far too late to tag three successors as protocol requires, I'm grateful for the opportunity to contribute my own appreciation.

As I reflect on the past year and contemplate the arrival of the new one in just a few hours, what I appreciate tremendously right now--as lawyer, as mediator, and as human being--is the community that surrounds me. In the real world where I spend so much of my time, friends, colleagues, and neighbors sustain me. And out here in cyberspace, blogging has brought me in touch with remarkable individuals who inspire me, encourage me, enlighten me, and, most wonderfully, can make me smile.

I appreciate you all--fellow bloggers, readers, friends. Happy new year to you all.