Dear Siena,
You know how they say time flies when you’re having fun? Well, whoever “they” may be, they couldn’t be more correct.
The day we thought would never come is finally here—Commencement, Graduation. That dreaded G-word that was always on the horizon, but it was always too far away to worry about. Now that it’s almost here, I think we’re all looking around and wondering where the time went.Â
It’s hard to put four amazing years into words, but I think we can start with the obvious. Siena, you gave us the best four years of our lives. The memories we are leaving with are ones we will carry with us. The late nights with friends that led to bleary Sunday mornings in Saga. Those nights, full of fun that always lead to 5am bedtimes because we were too busy laughing to look at the clock. And how could we forget the weekends that were probably too much fun—Siena Fests, Lark Fests, Halloweekends, each full of wild moments that will for sure be recounted years from now at reunions. The memories of homework-induced freakouts that led to us questioning our major, and more importantly, our sanity. It’s impossible to forget those all-nighters, locked away in a Siena Hall classroom, surrounded by books and empty coffee cups. However, we worked till sunrise, knowing there was a rewarding Limmy omelette in our future. No matter what it is, every minute spent here was one that we wish we could relive again.Â
You gave us the best people and the community we may ever know. The professors who pushed and supported us. We may not have appreciated it then, but looking back now, we accomplished so much because of their help. Be it the research they aided us with, the anxieties they helped us work through, or solving any issues we were having, they played a huge part in getting us to where we are. I’m positive that every one of us has that one professor that they will never be able to thank enough.
Siena, you gave us the best friends we could ever ask for. Whether they are the friends we met through clubs, our freshman dorm, or our major, they all play an integral role in who we came to be as individuals. They saw us at our absolute worst (even if we couldn’t remember what “the worst” entailed) and cheered the loudest for us at our best. The friends we met here are the ones we will always be thankful for, no matter if they are a couple of feet or a thousand miles away. Whatever happens, it’s safe to say that our Siena friends are the ones that we owe everything to, and the ones we will never forget. The community here is one that will be impossible to find again. There will never be another place like Siena, where you can find a friendly face around every corner. Siena is a one in a million place.
Siena, we’ve called you home for the past four years and now that it’s time to say goodbye, I think we’re all at a loss. Come Graduation Day, we will walk across the stage and receive that piece of paper and we will close this chapter in pursuit of new ones. Whatever they may be, Siena got us there. It isn’t easy to say goodbye, but what we have encountered here is something to be thankful for. You didn’t just give us the education of a lifetime, you gave us the experience of a lifetime. We will always be Saints, no matter where we go from here.
For the rest of our lives, we can look back to you and we can smile. So I think, Siena, the last thing we can say to you, is thank you. For everything.Â
Sincerely,
Siena College Class of 2017
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