An ode to a roommate

By: Lily McMenemy

As a resident assistant (RA), I’m required to do room checks. Maybe it’s because I like to see the beauty in things, but when I walk in I see a lot, and not just the contraband you failed to hide. A picture plays in my head. I don’t just see objects, but I see the memories attached to them, from the moments I share with my own roommates. I watch it in front of me like a scene from a 90s sitcom: peeking through peepholes and meals shared with everyone. Figures dance in the apartment, and I imagine A Roommate-

There’s behavior charts and handmade posters, and I think of inside jokes that never left and “canon events.”

It’s quiet, but I can hear the laughter of friends who stay over – hushed gossip at 4 a.m. after a night out, a joke about a laundry pile like the Berlin wall and off-key singing. 

A bathroom brings the feeling of holding back A Roommate’s hair, a favor returned out of love. Spills on the carpet are from knocking over cups while dancing. 

In the living room, I see ghosts. The TV lights up with late-night rom-coms or crappy reality shows. There are tea parties on the carpet. A Roommate puts on an Oscar-worthy performance, reenacting a conversation with their crush (they definitely got snubbed).  

It hits me that it won’t always be this way. Even though there are fights, there’s also snackable peace offerings, and A Roommate subconsciously fixing your chapstick. 

I feel the entryway, and the weight of coming home after terrible news and crying into their arms. I leave a little piece of my heart on the couch, where we realize A Roommate is leaving for good in five weeks. 

So my opinion this week is that you should love where you’re living by making the best of what you have. When I see an apartment, I can see the episodes of “Friends” we perform in their interiors. We’re all young, have our quirks and are living through a special time in our lives by being in college. It’s never perfect, but it can be beautiful. Turn these into some of your Good Ole Days. Share your heart and your home, and make memories with A Roommate.