Lessons from the Lighthouse

Last night I pulled into the driveway, and all six of our cars were present. A rare occurrence for us college seniors. Usually its only in the late hours of the night or for five minutes at a time that all members of the Lighthouse (we named our quaint little dwelling) are at home. These moments are sweet, and even sweeter now that we move out in less than a month. 

So I've been thinking lately about what living in the Lighthouse has taught me. Living with five other college girls has been one of the best years of my life, but also the most formative and challenging. 

We spent a year connected to five other lives. A year of stovetops full of spaghetti and school books spilling out over the couches and floors. A year of snuggling down into blankets during a movie night or dancing to Sinatra Christmas scratching from the record player. A year of wild dance parties, stray chik-fil-a bags, dog hair, and empty bottles of dish soap.

It's so close to being over, but I don't want to think about it. Instead, here's some important things I learned from my senior year in our Lighthouse:

1. How to cook spaghetti squash (Whole 30 anyone?)
2. A good relationship with your landlord needs to be a thing.
3. You can have intimate relationships with your roommates or live as strangers. You get to decide which one it'll be. 
4. Cooking food for each other creates strong bonds of love. 
5. Stealing food from each other creates strong bonds of annoyance.
6. We are all different is ways we will and won't understand. Respect and honor that about each other.
7. Sometimes your roommates can tell you're having a bad day before you do.
8. When you run out of toilet paper, there's going to be a lot of talk about getting more, and it'll be a while before you actually do get more. If you want toilet paper, go get it yourself.
9. Movie nights are the absolute best. Especially when you drag all your mattresses and pillows into the living room. 
10. Happy and sad times are both great opportunities to share a bottle of wine. 
10. If you're going to plan a Halloween party, then go all out. 
11. If your neighbors own a dying cat, be compassionate to the cat lovers of the house and don't laugh when it gets run over. 
12.  You will get a lot of mail that belongs to the previous tenants and they will never come and get it and you will have a giant stack of mail forever. Find a nice corner in the laundry room to keep it out of sight, out of mind.
13. Develop close relationships with boys so they will come do your yard work.
14. Bake cookies of appreciation for these hard-working said boys. 
15. People will come out of the woodwork for a Harry Potter movie marathon so yes, do it. 
16. Discover who is brave enough to kill the roaches before the roach is wrecking havoc on your kitchen counters.
17. There's going to be conflict and tension, but be diligent to serve and communicate anyway. Relationships deepen when you run toward conflict instead of away from it. 
18. Ask before using someone else's dry shampoo. It's expensive, and they will find out.
19. Sharing clothes is wonderful and you will miss it very much. 
20. Sometimes you will wake up and strangers will be sleeping on your couch. This is okay and probably one of your roommates' friends (but always exercise caution, just in case).
21. If you're the first to wake up on a Saturday morning, start making pancakes and bacon. You will have very happy roommates. 
22. If the trash can is full, empty it. 
23. Dishes will cause lots of conflict. 
24. You will come to love these girls like your own sisters. 
25. Take lots of pictures.