From Where I Sit: Amina Sibtain

by Amina Sibtain '11
FEATURES CONTRIBUTOR

Amina Sibtain is a Hamilton senior from Pakistan.

The first time I saw the sign for Hamilton College, I started crying. They were not tears of joy, but more of a ‘What the hell am I doing here?’ nature. Back then I was so scared of what the next four years had in store for me, but today I sit here looking back at my time, and wish I could go back and do it all over again.

If you had asked me four years ago whether I was going to change as a person during my time at Hamilton, my answer would have been “Absolutely not.” Today, I wouldn’t recognize the freshman version of myself if I were to meet her. Hamilton has allowed me to grow not only academically, but personally as well. In four months, when I graduate, I will walk out a stronger, more well-rounded and compassionate – I like to also think funnier – person.

From where I sit, Hamilton gave me the opportunity to find myself and see the world through a completely different lens. On a small scale, I ate my first peanut butter and jelly sandwich in Commons, went sledding for the first time on the football field with my friends, raced rolling chairs in KJ at 2 a.m. and did my best Michael Jackson dance impersonation while slipping on black ice in front of Milbank.

I’ve met some of the nicest and some of the craziest people at Hamilton (you know who you are). They’ve been there for me through everything: from feeding me when I was too stressed during finals to making hospital runs with me whenever I had an asthma attack (it happened more than you would expect). From barging into my room at 7 a.m. to wake me up for Class and Charter Day to making sure I made it to my 9 a.m. finals, my friends helped me forget how far away I was from Pakistan and made Hamilton my second home.

Hamilton produced relationships and memories that I would not exchange for anything in life. I made my fair share of mistakes during my four years at Hamilton, but the way that I dealt with them made me realize how much I have grown during this experience.

It’s hard to imagine that I will not be returning to the Hill in August – thinking about it gives me goosebumps. However, as scary as graduation might be, I know Hamilton has prepared me well. Someone once said that we are all like a box of crayons, and while most of us are eight color boxes, everyone is looking for a 64 color box. At Hamilton, I found my 64 color box of crayons.

From Where I Sit is a column dedicated to the international voices of Hamilton’s campus. If you are an international student and are interested in contributing a column, contact Barbara Britt-Hysell (bbritthy@hamilton.edu)