IndyBar: ‘I’ll Get You, My Pretty’

By Chaka Coleman

One of my grandmother’s favorite movies was “The Wizard of Oz.” Recently, I’ve pondered a very practical question about that movie: Who built the Yellow Brick Road?

The road is just there, a foundation of stone, willing and readily able to accept travelers of every ilk. The foundation of that road marked the path to freedom for the munchkins, yet, perhaps rightfully, Dorothy receives all the glory.

I find myself wondering if the munchkins themselves built that foundation many years before Dorothy’s arrival, leading the way to eventually killing the Wicked Witch. What does this have to do with the bar exam? Well, my pretty, quite a lot.

“What makes the Hottentot so hot? What puts the ‘ape’ in apricot? What have they got that I ain’t got? Courage!” There is an immense amount of pressure to pass the bar exam and an even greater sense of shame when you don’t. And just like the question of who built the Yellow Brick Road, the fear and indignity we experience after failing the bar isn’t always said out loud. The taste of victory after defeat is even sweeter when seasoned with persistence. I should know; that exam defeated me. Akin to both Dorothy and many of my legal brethren, life has been one big exercise in perseverance, but the most important lesson I’ve learned is to appreciate the foundation of supporters you’ve built while embarking on tough journeys.

“Why, anybody can have a brain. That’s a very mediocre commodity.” Never limit the value of your associates and clerks after failure. Some of their talents lie beyond the confines of traditional jurisprudence. There is no shame in not passing the bar the first try, or the second or even the third. My seat at the table was given to me by those who saw my potential before I entered law school, those who faced my losses full on and affirmed my abilities throughout, and when I didn’t pass, those who offered me resources, tips and tricks and, above all, infinite grace.

“Who would have thought a good little girl like you could destroy my beautiful wickedness?” After finally passing the July exam, this rebellious girl from the country, who still hates to put shoes on her feet, is now walking into her purpose as a proud Hoosier attorney. I was valuable, marketable, and competent before I passed — and so are you.

“Back where I come from, we have universities, seats of great learning, where men go to become great thinkers. And when they come out, they think deep thoughts and with no more brains than you have. But they have one thing you haven’t got: a diploma.” Studying for the bar is no easy feat and passing it is even tougher. But when you take your last breath and move beyond this world, you won’t be remembered for your bar exam score, LSAT score or law school GPA. You’ll be remembered for the way you treated other human beings in the midst of their failures, in the moments of their success and at every point in between. The Wizard of Oz said it best: “And remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others.” My hope is that everyone reading this will adopt a similar position toward those bar takers who come behind them, always finding ways to empathize with their most monumental setbacks while simultaneously laying a foundation for their greatest victories.

“You’ve always had the power, my dear, you just had to learn it yourself.” Every exam takers’ eventual success will in some way require the reinforcement of a band of companions who have heart, courage and intelligence, and my hope is that all bar takers pick up some pretty incredible friends to help as they skip their way down this yellow brick journey. It isn’t always pretty or filled with the chorus of kind onlookers, and the landscape certainly isn’t made of candy. Much like Dorothy, when you reach the Emerald City — the culmination of years of hard work during law school and a pinnacle of passing the bar — you may find that things aren’t what they seem.

Congratulations to all who passed the July bar exam, and to those who did not, if you ever need a stone to lay beneath your feet, consider IndyBar a resource to support you, because after all, you are capable of more than you know.•

Chaka Coleman is an attorney lobbyist with Paganelli Law Group.