I’ve started writing this profile about twenty different times, and with each attempt I seem to get farther away from expressing how I truly feel about being at Duke.  So I’ll preface this by saying that words cannot accurately describe how in love I am with this school and how grateful I am to have been presented with the endless stream of opportunities that is the BN Duke program.

            I don’t know how or when it began, but for as long as I can remember it was my dream to come to Duke.  I don’t know why I loved it then.  If asked, I would rattle off the usual answers – the academics (obviously), the sports (this was a complete lie – I didn’t know Kyle Singler or John Scheyer existed until about three months ago), the campus (true, it’s absolutely beautiful, but aesthetics are hardly a valid reason for choosing a university), and various other ambiguous responses that can be found by perusing any of the university’s promotional materials.

            My first semester at Duke was many things: overwhelming, surprising, challenging, but above all, inspiring.  As a pre-med, I grudgingly signed up for Arabic to get Trinity’s three semester language requirement out of the way.  Five months later, I am fully involved in both the Arabic and Islamic studies departments and am planning on continuing with both throughout my undergraduate career.  In September, I saw a flyer in my dorm advertising an emergency medicine course and, curious, decided to attend the informational session.  After over two hundred hours of extra class time first semester, I am now a certified EMT and a (very new) member of the Duke University EMS squad.   The defining aspect of my first semester, however, was coming together with a group of eleven other students and joining a community of scholars that, although completely diverse in interests, shares a common purpose and passion for service.   Again, I can’t accurately describe what it feels like to be a part of a community that knows exactly who I am, what my goals are, and how to inspire me on a daily basis.

            If I were asked right now about my justification for loving Duke, I think I would be able to answer far more truthfully (and specifically).  I love 3:00 am Cookout runs with the girls on my hall and tree-climbing sessions with Benton.  I love walking the relatively deserted East campus quad in the painfully early hours before my 8:30 chemistry lecture.  I love studying (sleeping) in the Link between classes, Marketplace breakfast, eight person seminars, BN birthdays and long hours talking in ePrint.  I love all of those magical moments that can't be captured in any college admissions brochure and the multitude of opportunities and creative outlets that no website can enumerate.  But more than anything, I love that surreal moment when I walk beneath the chapel and realize that I’m exactly where I’ve always wanted to be and how happy I am to be living out this dream.