Mailbox, 6:00 a.m.

Right on cue: June 3, 6 AM, Mailbox. Jury Service Notice.

Are you a resident of the county?

Are you a citizen of the United States?

Can you read and understand English?

Are you 18 years of age or older?

Click.

"Welcome to the on-demand virtual orientation for jurors."

Click again to select 1.5X speed. Open the fridge.

Make the coffee. What time's the parade this morning? Best place to park? What can I start getting together before the boy wakes up?

But then, thoughts of plans and logistics interrupted by something worth rewinding and starting again:

For some, the first reaction to seeing that summons is how inconvenient it will be to serve as a juror.

After all, jury duty conflicts with everyday obligations we have at work and home.

It interrupts the flow of our lives.

Hold that thought for a moment and step back from the process temporarily so that we can appreciate how lucky we are to be able to think of jury services in that light.

For centuries, all throughout the world, people have fought for one of the most fundamental rights known to all of us: the right to be judged by a jury of ones peers -- not by tyrants or dictators or professional jurists, but by our fellow citizens -- by members of our community.

Even today, people in foreign lands strive for that basic element of any system of justice.

We are fortunate to be able to take for granted the privilege enshrined in our federal and state constitutions, both of which guarantee the right to trial by jury.

Along with that right and privilege comes responsibility.

So when friends have asked me from time to time how they might get out of jury duty, my answer is always the same:

"We are lucky to live in a society that asks us to perform this basic duty of citizenship, and we must all serve when called, or the system we value will not work."