Opposites Attract

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When I first arrived at MIT, armed with a suitcase full of dreams and a head full of ambitions, I never expected that one of my greatest lessons would come not from a lecture hall, but from the person I’d be sharing a tiny dorm room with for the next two years.

Enter Marcus (name changed for privacy), my roommate, who I met online before coming to MIT. If you were to put us side by side, you’d be hard-pressed to find two more different individuals.

Let me paint you a picture:

  • I’m of Asian descent, raised in a bustling city where the streets never sleep. Marcus is African American, hailing from a quiet suburban neighborhood where everyone knows everyone else’s business.
  • My idea of a perfect Saturday night involves a cup of cheap bubble tea, a few episodes of the latest K-drama, and a challenging problem set. Marcus? He’s probably out there painting the town red, his laughter echoing through Cambridge’s historic streets.
  • I wake with the sun, eager to seize the day. Marcus greets the morning with a groan, emerging from his cocoon of blankets only after his third alarm.
  • While I’m crunching numbers and pouring over the most obscure bugs in my code, Marcus is dressed to the nines crafting eloquent presentations and case studies.
  • My playlist is a mix of classical symphonies and K-pop beats. Marcus’s desk thrums with the soulful tones of jazz and the poetic rhythms of hip-hop.
  • I find solace in a steaming cup of French press coffee; Marcus swears by his green tea.

On paper, we’re as different as quantum physics and Shakespeare. Yet, here we are, two years later, having shared not just a room, but countless laughs, late-night conversations, and a friendship that has defied all odds.

So, how did this unlikely duo not just coexist, but thrive? As I reflect on our time together, a few key ingredients come to mind:

  1. Curiosity: From day one, we approached our differences with genuine curiosity. Instead of judgment, we chose questions. “Why do you love jazz so much?” I’d ask. “What’s the appeal of solving math problems for fun?” he’d counter. Each question opened a door to understanding.
  2. Respect: We quickly learned to respect each other’s space, time, and choices. If Marcus needed to sleep in, I’d tiptoe around in the morning. When I needed quiet study time, he’d take his social butterfly tendencies elsewhere.
  3. Open Mindedness: We made a pact to try each other’s interests. That’s how I found myself at my first college party (turns out, I can dance… sort of), and how Marcus ended up joining me for a 6 AM run along the Charles (he still claims I tried to kill him).
  4. Shared Values: Beneath our surface differences, we discovered shared core values - a drive for excellence, a desire to make a positive impact, and a deep appreciation for authentic relationships.
  5. Humor: Perhaps most importantly, we learned to laugh - at ourselves, at each other, at the absurdity of our odd-couple situation. Humor became our universal language.

As we prepare to part ways next year - both of us having earned enough housing points to snag some of the best singles in New House - I find myself reflecting on the lessons this unlikely friendship has taught me.

In Marcus, I found not just a roommate, but a window into a different world. Through him, I’ve learned to see beyond stereotypes, to appreciate the richness that diversity brings, and to understand that there’s no one “right” way to experience college or life.

Our friendship has been a microcosm of what makes MIT, and indeed the world, so beautiful - the coming together of different perspectives, experiences, and skills to create something greater than the sum of its parts.

As we packed up our shared room, deciding who gets to keep the mini-fridge and who takes the microwave, there was bittersweet feeling in the air. We’re excited for the new adventures that await us in our single rooms, but there’s a tinge of sadness too.

No longer will I wake up to the sound of Marcus’s jazz playlist. No longer will he come home to find me surrounded by a fortress of textbooks. Our day-to-day lives will diverge, but the impact of our unlikely friendship will remain.

As I stand at the threshold of my junior year, I’m filled with gratitude for this unexpected friendship. Marcus has taught me that the most profound learning often happens outside the classroom, in the spaces between differences, in the challenges of understanding someone whose world is different from your own.

To all incoming MIT freshmen nervously eyeing their future roommates’ profiles, I say this: embrace the differences. Your roommate might not be your clone, your ideal study buddy, or even someone you’d normally hang out with. But in those differences lies an opportunity - for growth, for understanding, for friendship that transcends boundaries.

After all, isn’t that what MIT is all about? It’s not just about building bridges in engineering labs; it’s about building bridges between people, ideas, and worlds.

So here’s to you, Marcus, my opposite, my roommate, my friend. Our room may be divided next year, but the lessons we’ve learned together will last a lifetime.