The beginning of the end

4.5 years after I first set foot in Princeton, I am looking at youtube videos, trying to learn the lyrics and tune of "Old Nassau." I'm a little late, I know, but for the first time, tradition actually seems worthwhile as commencement hovers on the horizon. 2010 will be the 263rd class to graduate from this institution. That's a big number, 29 years older than the age of the United States of America. And yet, in many ways, I barely know this place. Unlike my friends who are orange key tour guides, or in a capella groups and eating clubs, I feel few ties to the history and stories of Princeton. Nevertheless, it has become part of who I am. And now that my time here is coming to a close, I wonder if I should have paid more deliberate attention to this environment which has shaped how I think, see, and live my life. I think about whether I should have been more engaged, not just with the individuals who are my friends and classmates, but with the institution and the culture. Of course, the answer is yes, which means that I will leave Princeton with my share of regrets. But regret, at the very least, is a sign that some learning and revelation occurred. And if I'll be celebrating anything on commencement day, it won't be what I have accomplished here (because that was negligible) but the people and traditions of Princeton that have changed the nature of my regrets.