A journalist. A photographer. Three future doctors. A global health fellow. An engineer. An artist.
These are just some of my suitemates. We are a group of fourteen — technically a suite of seven guys and a suite of seven girls — connected by a hallway. We call ourselves “the 14 Pack.”
I met all of my current suitemates during our freshmen year in various ways. Some were my best friends or suitemates at the time. Others were friends of friends, people who I shared classes with, or other Piersonites whom I only saw when going up or downstairs.
I was initially hesitant about this living arrangement. As an only child, the idea of sharing a suite with thirteen suitemates was difficult to wrap my head around. Having experienced some adjustment difficulties during my freshman year, I couldn’t predict how I would feel in this setup.
But it all worked out better than I ever imagined.
One of my happiest memories of our suite happened very recently. My birthday always lands smack in the middle of winter break, which means I never have and never will celebrate it with friends at Yale.
Or so I thought. The night before spring semester classes officially began, I returned to the common room to find all thirteen suitemates, holding cakes, candy, board games (my favorite things!) and singing “Happy Birthday.” They had planned me a surprise birthday party, and it even catered specifically to my interests and time. We spent the rest of the night talking and catching up on each other’s lives.
To be honest, moments like this don’t happen every day in the 14 Pack. We all operate on completely different schedules — alas, some of us go to sleep as others are rising — so it’s rare for us to be together all at once.
But we do what we can. One of my suitemates sends out a weekly “newsletter,” advertising the ongoings and accomplishments of everyone in the 14 Pack. We celebrate each suitemate’s birthday. Occasionally, we’ll go as a group to attend movies, shows, and other events — even a Vampire Weekend concert in Brooklyn.
I had no idea life in the 14 Pack would be this good. We may not see everyone every day, so I can’t wait for the next birthday.
