For some reason, the other day I was reminiscing about my dorm life in my college days. I know I wrote previously of my roommates who I'm still in contact (on a regular basis thanks to Facebook) with. Jasmine and I had been in another dorm together, but did not share a room. We got along really well and decided to try and move into the nicer dorms on the other side of campus and become roomies. 
There were 8 of us living in a 4 bedroom dorm with a common living area and a decent bathroom (most of the time). My roomie and I were the only 2 from Florida- while the other 6 were from Alabama: There was Angie- our peacemaker, Krystal- carefree and full of life, Tenly- (who my daughter is named after) focused and gentle, Rachel- creative and insightful, Dana- loved to laugh and spontaneous (and could bring a smile to anyone), and Jasmine- I'll get to her in a minute. Thank goodness first impressions do not last forever, because their first impression with me was a bit like "...how long do we HAVE to live with her..?". Jasmine and I had been put through the ringer up to the last minute getting moved into that dorm- so when we finally were able to walk through the doors, I will just say I wasn't exactly "perky". 
I was between 6-8 years older than most of my roommates, but I don't think any of us really saw the age difference. Once the new semester started and we were finally getting everything established, I started to realize big similarities and differences between Jaz and I that weren't so apparent at first! I am very organized, neat, clean, always has a plan, etc. Jasmine, well she is a breath of fresh air, she almost always has a smile on her face that will light up a room! We were SO opposite though, she does not need to have a place for everything and it did not "rock her world" if she left some clothes on the floor or didn't make her bed. She had no reason to wake up 2-3 hours before her classes. She is so sickeningly beautiful that she could jump in and out of the shower get dressed and fly out the door with a little make up in a matter 15-20 minutes and look like she had been up for hours!
I envied her 'ease' so much! I tried not caring about my bed being made like she did, and found myself trying to run clear across campus between classes to just make it! When I would try to wake up late and walk out the door 'all together' like she did, I would instead find myself frazzled all day. The other side, was when I would try to convince Jaz that my way was The Way. I wouldn't necessarily just come out and tell her verbally, but I would do those little subtle things. I would organize her desk for her, pick up her clothes, make her bed, organize her shoes, etc. She was so great, she'd come in the room and laugh, she would say "you just couldn't take it?". (she may have been infuriated with me, but never showed it if so)
Looking back, I realize how having a roommate SO opposite of me helped me grow! I learned to relax (well at least a little) and let things go, sometimes. It was a lesson I needed so badly to learn, and God gave me the opportunity to learn it in the best way possible- through giving me one of the dearest friends and allowing me to just simply watch and admire and better me.
Everyone needs people like this in their life. Jasmine is not the only friend I have who is opposite of me. But, she is the one who helped me see how and the need to change some things- and I am grateful!
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