Stand Up For What You Believe In: Even If You Stand Alone
Day two of my deep dive into all the lessons ever learned from Night Court and the one for today seems especially of import.
Being that the show itself took place in a courtroom with thirtysomethings still enthusiastic about the law, doing what's right, and helping people, this was a frequent storyline for many a character, especially that of Harry and the female public defender characters. See: Ellen Foley as Billie Young in the gif above. But, some of the other characters had their share of a similar storyline as well, such as Mac marrying Quon-Le so that she could have her citizenship, Bull's attempts at being a father, and, yes, even Dan did the right thing in the end. The point is, the characters' decision to go into law was heavily fueled by their altruistic desire to stand up for the downtrodden. As we learned yesterday, this was not always easy to do or were they always successful, leading to a character burn out, ie Harry in the last entry.
Personally, I was especially impacted by these storylines when they followed Harry (well, when wasn't I affected by him) as well as those of the public defender whether it be Billie Young (Ellen Foley) or Christine Sullivan (Markie Post). Influenced by Harry, of course, because of my great trust and admiration in him, seeing hm as the ultimate father figure, but I am happy to note that my first influence of strong female was introduced to me by Night Court in the likeness of Billie Young and Christine Sullivan.
Both characters' first storyline were marked by their nervous first days' in court coupled with their exuberant desire to do what's right, even if it was against the law and none went with them, even their own clients. Often this would land them a stint in jail for their disobedience of the law and so they proudly went head held high. Most of the time, Harry was in support of their stance, although his hands being tied by the requirements of the law, always he was proud of them.
In fact, all of the characters' held pride in doing what was right even if standing alone, yes, even Dan. For what other reason was there to follow after this career path, if not to fight for what is right. So, even if it went against the letter of the law, all had immense pride when one of their own held their ground, even though eventually they had to relinquish. Because as we learned yesterday from Dan, "we can only do what the law allows", eventually they had to succumb to that reality.
However, this inner belief remained and kept the fire for justice alive, as they grew they learned how to navigate the fight in a more balanced and productive fashion.
Like a small boat
On the ocean
Sending big waves
Into motion
Like how a single word
Can make a heart open
I might only have one match
But I can make an explosion
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