I’ve really struggled to think of what I could write in my senior column. As I look to my peers taking gorgeous senior pictures by Denny Chimes and posting their post-grad plans, I’ve felt less than adequate when explaining that I plan to work for a year before continuing onto to law school. As I see people wearing cords of every shade of the rainbow, I feel embarrassed that I only have three.

But this morning as I woke up to help my dad at his business, my ungratefulness overwhelmed me. In my self-pity, I’ve failed to fully grasp the fact that my parents, who came to this country to give themselves and their children a fair chance at life, are beaming with pride when they tell people I’ll be graduating, as the first college graduate of my family. As I send off my resumes, I failed to look back at the page long list of organizations, awards and acknowledgments that I’ve received in my college career. I’ve failed to recognize that despite working full-time, sometimes more than one job at a time, and being involved on campus, I’ve finished my college career rather gracefully. I’ve failed to tell myself that despite the financial, physical and emotional troubles I’ve had these four years, I’ve finally done it (granted I still have to pass my finals but still). In my ungratefulness, I’ve pushed myself towards recognizing what others have done, but not what I’ve done, and I’ve failed as a woman of faith to recognize that God has put me where he wants me.

You see, often we either don’t recognize our great qualities, or we overlook how much others have helped us get to where we are. I don’t want to be the latter. I want to thank The Coca-Cola Foundation for awarding me the scholarship that allowed me to attend this beautiful campus. I want to thank Crossroads Community Center for providing me a second family. I want to thank the Counseling Center for saving my life. I want to thank the Blackburn Institute for giving me leadership skills to shape me in my career, and for providing me some of my best friends on campus. But most of all, I want to thank the people in administration, faculty and staff who work hard every day behind the scenes to give us the quality education and experience we receive.

Yes, I have complaints. We have problems on this campus we need to address regarding racism, sexism, mental health and cost of attendence. But as I stood in front of Gorgas Library, I couldn’t help but reflect on where I came from. My grandparents, who grew up in the hardships of post-partition Pakistan, would have never imagined that one day their grandchildren would walk across the graduation stage of such a prestigious institution. My father, who works day and night to provide for his family, and my mother, who has been my rock and my biggest cheerleader, have only ever imagined one thing for their children, and that is that they may live a life of security and prosperity. My children will, Insha’Allah (God willing), have a better life than me because of the hard work I’ve done to get an education. Each generation will advance and better itself. So,despite my fears of being inadequate, and not as good as others, I stand in front of Gorgas and remind myself, You did it. You’ve done it. Now, help others do it as well.

Thank you, UA. God bless this campus, and Roll Tide Roll.

Sehar Ezez is a senior majoring in history. She has written for the Crimson White since Summer 2016. She has served as a student worker in the Crossroads Community Center and is a member of the Blackburn Institute. After graduation, she will be taking a gap year before applying to law school.