The 2022 Senior Perspectives is the 17th in a series of annual collections. Senior captains and representatives of teams at Harvard have been invited to contribute viewpoints based on personal experience from both their senior seasons and full varsity careers at Harvard.

Kyle Mullin
Hometown: West Chester, Pa.
Concentration: Government
House Affiliation: Leverett

            My time at Harvard has been filled with the highest of the highs and the lowest of the lows. Navigating between the two with my teammates has been nothing short of magical.
 
            In high school I never really had plans to go to college. I thought a lot about getting in the trades, maybe trying to make it in music – I was really just hunting anything that wouldn't put me in a classroom again. When I first started getting recruited, I didn't even know where Harvard was. I had only heard about this place from movies and exaggerated stories. My image of Harvard was a Harry Potter-esque place filled with people in lab coats that I could probably never reach in conversation. In high school I spent a lot of my time knocking down drywall, picking guitars and causing one too many food fights with my brother. Nothing appeared more opposite than the world I was living in and the one that Harvard seemed to be. I never thought Harvard would be a place I would survive in, let alone call a home. As I look back, I don't think I could've been more wrong.
 
            I was blessed with an opportunity to come here. The coaching staff took a chance on me, and that is something I never did nor will take for granted. I am forever grateful. The five years I've spent with this program have been the best of my life. I often wondered if I would fit in at school, but when you're welcomed with open arms from 40+ guys on your first day that worry goes away quick.
 
            As my time is coming to an end, I've been thinking a lot about what I will miss the most. My time here has been unique. I've lost two seasons of lacrosse and I've watched five classes of seniors graduate. I've been a part of crushing defeats and thrilling victories. What I will miss the most is the time spent with my teammates in between the outcomes of the scoreboard. Every second of my time here I've been enwrapped in love by and for my teammates. There is nothing more wholesome than seeing the joy on your teammates faces a few days after a victory, and there is nothing more motivating than seeing their dismay after a loss. The process of sticking together, picking each other up and truly playing for the guy next to you is a beautiful thing. There is no greater sense of belonging on this earth than being surrounded by those you love and respect to chase one common goal. You cannot replicate this feeling. It is why I play the game and why goodbye is so hard.
 
            To the future men of Harvard lacrosse, give this program every single thing you have and you will be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams. This team is going to be the greatest thing you're ever a part of. Believe it. The thought of this program should start a fire in your chest and the smoke should echo out of your mouth every time you speak about it. Often passionate, sometimes painful, ALWAYS proud. The only bad thing about being a college athlete is that your journey is finite. Nothing will prepare you for goodbye, but you can leave peacefully knowing you gave this team absolutely everything you had.
           
            I don't know what life looks like for me without this team. It has been my everything since I was given the opportunity to play. It is going to leave a void that seems impossible to fill. However, if I can find something that brings me half the joy, half the sense of belonging and half the adventure, I know I'll be alright.

Kyle Mullin
Co-Captain of Harvard Men's Lacrosse