As a parting gift to the staff of the District, Judge Lynch sent out a beautiful poem that sums up well the tasks faced by trial court judges. It is reprinted here, with his permission. Best wishes for a long, happy and healthy retirement, Ed!
Becoming a Judge
When you grow weary of lawyering, the stress and the
strife
When you realize you want more purpose and meaning in your life
When you can leave behind the advocacy that defined your career
And embrace neutrality and solitude without hesitation or fear
When you can see in every criminal a trace of good
When you can follow your
conscience and do what you should
Despite public pressure or
media presence
And temper justice with
mercy as you pronounce your sentence
When you are able to help lawyers and litigants reach
resolutions
When you focus on the kids and not the parents in dissolutions
When all around you is chaos but you remain calm
And apply to society's wounds the law's healing balm
When you recognize the conflicts and strive to accommodate
When you overlook minor
irritations and decline to intimidate
When you ease those before
you: the frightened and nervous
With compassion,
understanding and a commitment to service
When you look beyond the cases scheduled before you
And understand the ramifications of all that you do
On the administration of
justice and the public’s perception
And conduct your life honorably, without exception
When you accept there is nothing routine about the
matters you see
Because they involve peoples' freedom, property or family
When you can appreciate the tragedy
and humor cases can have
But hide the tears and suppress the laugh
When you earn the respect of others and the community’s
trust
When you’re considered fair,
impartial, patient and just,
When you understand that the
process is as important as the end
Then, then you will be a judge, my friend.
