Rajaonasy the Roommate

Here in Luther Hall, I have the pleasure of sharing a dorm room with my new friend Jean Rajaonasy. He's 34, he's from Madagascar, and he's well on his way to becoming a fine pastor. One of the great things about Cambridge is that it is in someways a crossroads of the world, much like London. People come from all over the world to study in Cambridge. Two of the students in Luther Hall hail originally from Brazil, one from Finland, two from California, one from New York, two from Wisconsin, one from Illinois, two from Indiana, one from Missouri, one from Mississippi (that's me!), and Jean from Madagascar. Jean is inspiring in many ways. First, he's a husband and father who has to spend the bulk of the year away from his beautiful family, making my 4-month absence from my family, friends, and girlfriend seem like a breeze. Secondly, he knows three languages fluently (Malagasy, French, and English) and he is learning two more here at Westfield House (Greek and Hebrew)! He's quite funny, too. I laughed especially hard when he moaned, "I am poisoning myself" as he ate a bowl of ice cream.
Anyway, I'm enjoying my time as his roommate. Someone else will replace me as his roomy next semester when I go back "home" to Josh, but until then, I'm more than content to watch "football" and jam out to Taylor Swift with my new mate (she's one of his favorite American singers).