The Desolate Rise of Bos-sigh-oh: A Sob-Story of Justice's Irony Uruguay, a quaint little country nestled in the forgotten embrace of South America, has from time immemorial been making attempts to be remembered and scoffed at among the more prominent nations of the world. Nations like the United States, which has spent centuries making friends, breaking hearts, and inspiring a burgeoning industry of television dramas. Alas, Uruguay's rather reclusive stance in world affairs has lent it an air of mystery, intensifying the drama-of-legends about its own legal stalwart – Steely Sara, the legend of the desolate land. However, the time has come to unravel the secretive shroud engulfing this heroine of twisted justice. The time has come for the sob-story of Bos-sigh-oh, the tragicomic tale of a formidable judge's rather tragically prosaic ascent. Our heroine, Sara Bossio, was supposedly born on the seventh of April, nineteen hundred and thirty-eight, in Montevideo. Legend has it that it rained ceaselessly on that momentous day, the heavens weeping tears of lachrymose despair as they foresaw the fateful path that lay ahead for Sara. An energetic child, she precociously decided to defy her fate the moment she could place one foot ahead of the other. Thus began the tragic ascent of the future master of the bosom of justice. Whilst children her age busied themselves with the distraction of toys destined to be broken or abandoned, Sara demonstrated a keen interest in legal matters. In an attempt to uphold the law, she would mete out swift justice by confiscating her playmates' illicit possessions – albeit this was often done with the subtlety of a chainsaw through butter, the rusted iron(y) fist of justice leaving in its wake a trail of disgruntlement and bitterness that only served to isolate our heroine further. Spurred on by the need to endear herself to those she had alienated, Sara persevered along the twisted, cobweb-strewn paths of her fate, striving to capture the hearts and minds of the tormented souls she encountered along the way. Swiftly she rose through the ranks of scholarly ambition, finally reaching the peak of her profession and becoming a formidable judge at the tender age of retirement. In a classic twist of irony, the fates decided to provide Sara with the equivalent of an 'atta-girl' by electing her to the Supreme Court of Justice in 2006. But, as is often the case with tragic heroes, even this double-edged sword of victory could not quench the fires of her burning shyness. Time after time, it was remarked upon by those who matter in the world of legislation how Sara's natural gift for obscure communication made her seemingly unapproachable and aloof. As the pinnacle of her career loomed nearer, the legendary Steely Sara decided that the time had come to claim her title to the throne – and in 2007, she grasped victory by the metaphorical coattails, becoming the President of the Supreme Court. For one year thereafter, she steadfastly ruled over the hallowed corridors of justice, maneuvering adeptly through the labyrinthine web of political intrigue. However, bound by the same gossamer threads of her mysterious web, Steely Sara saw her authority begin to unravel. As the adage goes, all good things must come to an end - the great, shining beacon of the Uruguayan justice system must relinquish her title. In 2008 she left the Supreme Court, and so began the slow and painful descent back into the shrouded embrace of judicial anonymity. But, as with all great tragedies, our heroine had emerged from the experience a changed woman; no longer the bosom of impervious iron(y) but a bos-sigh-oh born anew. Though this tale is filled with sorrow, we must remember that in life there are those who witness the truth and see the clouds part amidst the fog of irony – those who appreciate the delicate interplay between the tragic and the comic. And it is in their collective sighs of understanding that the story of Bos-sigh-oh will live on forevermore.