Walking with Justice

First off, here is a shameless plug for Goodreads:  I love it because I end up reading books I would normally pass over at the library, but the reviews and synopses get me every single time.  Also, disclaimer:  I won this book through their First Reads giveaway.  

Boring cover is boring, but at the very least, it's exactly what it says on the tin.

The author was kind enough to sign it before sending it to me :)

The memoir begins with a a cross country drive to Judge Max Rosenn's funeral ceremony, where Mollie starts to reminisce on her life-changing mentorship with Judge.  Though she and her husband were not able to make it to the service on time, Judge's family was kind enough to describe the ceremony and excerpts of the eulogies.  From that point on, each chapter had a similar layout: a part of the eulogy, which transitions into a personal anecdote that relates to that part of the eulogy, and a lesson Mollie walked away with from that instance.  Some of the lessons were worded a little cheesily, like it would've been inscribed inside a Dove chocolate wrapper: "Every person is a living treasure box.  Listening holds the key."

But the lessons she learned from Judge Rosenn were heartfelt nonetheless: 

"Humility does not mean thinking less of yourself in any way; it means not thinking about yourself at all.  It flows not from your ego but from your heartfelt gratitude for all the gifts you've been given and the opportunity to use them in the service of others.  True humility is not about bringing yourself down.  It is about reflecting back to others how they have enlarged you."

I loved the way Mollie described her relationship with Judge Rosenn - he was such a jovial, honest, and kind mentor to her, working and teaching her about work, faith, and ethics all the way to the end.  However, he was "too good", if there's such a thing.  I wished she would have gone into describing some of his more difficult times, and instances where he struggled to balance Biblical teachings, socially perceived notions of right and wrong, and personal ethics when they clashed.  I wanted to read about times where he actually got angry or frustrated with justice.  Times where justice has failed and disappointed him.  You see none of that; only the rosy memories.  It was a sweet memoir, but I felt like these lessons were from "one of Mollie's greatest mentors" and not "one of Life's greatest mentors".