Blog Post #7: Noodle Night

I like to think of myself as someone who is good at making connections. For better or for worse, I like to talk to strangers, and to introduce my friends to one another. Last year, when I was a freshman in college trying to make friends in a new place, my passion for connection-building led me to invite a group of around ten new students I’d met to my dorm to have a “noodle night”. I had far too many packages of instant ramen in my dorm to finish alone, and besides, the dining hall food was never good on Saturday nights. So, I created a group chat, and that night we all gathered to eat instant ramen together. An idea came to me. Why don’t I create a club at my school solely aimed at building community around noodles?

Last weekend, Noodle Night finally became a reality. Our school’s first-ever club focused on noodles. For our event, we ordered 22 bowls of pho from a local Vietnamese restaurant. Nine bowls of beef pho, nine bowls of chicken, and four vegetarian-friendly bowls. A few minutes before the event was supposed to start, I waited anxiously by myself at the event location. Of our executive board (e-board) of four, I was the only one there yet. Two of our e-board members were picking up the food, and our social media manager hadn’t arrived yet. I sat nervously, wondering if people would show up. Then, one of my friends arrived. Next, a girl I’d never met before but who had apparently found Noodle Night on the school event portal. Then a group of international students from India. At last, my fellow e-board members arrived, along with the food. People continued trickling in, looking curious and excited. We put all the food on two white serving tables- the bowls with noodles and meat or veggies, accompanied by taller bowls of broth. At the end of the table we set out the individual bags of toppings- bean sprouts, lime, cilantro. Small containers of hoisin sauce and sriracha. Forks and chopsticks. With the food all ready to go, I gave everyone the okay to serve themselves. As people were getting food, the aroma of pho broth caught the attention of some people passing by. It happened to be music students I knew, on their way to dinner. I called them over, and invited them to sit and have some noodles. Before I knew it, we had run out of food and people were eating and chatting with one another. The warm buzz of conversation and the slurping of noodles filled the space, and I felt like I had created magic. Noodle Night has shown me my strength in building connections, but more than that, it’s reminded me never to take life too seriously. At the end of any day, good or bad, productive or restful, it’s always a good time to sit down with a steaming hot bowl of noodles.