Kwan Kew Lai ’74

At Wellesley College, I always headed to the rustic bench by Lake Waban when I needed to recharge. Leaving my home in Malaysia, half a globe away, there were times I felt homesick. Sitting on the bench listening to the whispering rustling of the leaves, watching the happy ripples of the lake water in the sunlight, immersing in the fall colors, the silent snow drift, the fragrance of spring; and once in a while, the silence broken by the cawing of the crows and the calls of the coxswain, “Ready, all, row!” All these soothed my psyche and reassured me that Wellesley was home.

Now, whenever I return to the college, I make a point to visit the bench. Its physical appearance has changed over the years, but the nostalgic sentiment remains: I am here whenever you need me.

I plod down and surrender into its embrace.