Title: The Beautiful Mess of Letting Go from a Life of Routine

Bennie Chang (SFS’26) is a Georgetown Storyteller from San Jose, California, and studies regional & comparative studies, art and international business diplomacy.

I first peel through its equator and then split the hemispheres like an egg. One naked orange, and two pieces of peel if I am lucky. Simple, clean, disciplined. From meals to exercises to study routines, my days are a study in function. But even efficient routines can suffocate.

“Don’t judge me, but I have barely left the neighborhood since arriving from Reagan National Airport last month,” I told my friend.

She looked at me in shock, or was it disappointment? “Bennie, you need to stop being so efficient and leave Georgetown.”

Of course, she was right. In the iPhone Health app, my “State of Mind” entries showed not a single positive emotion all week. I needed to leave.

Although rare, spontaneity can pulse through my veins. I scribbled out an escape plan  and executed: shooting out texts, purchasing tickets and sending out calendar invitations like the Gcal warrior I am. The muscles of popping the Georgetown bubble had atrophied, but as a former daily commuter from campus to intern, I knew my trusty friend, GUTS (Georgetown University Transportation Service), would have my back these two weeks as I tried to break out of my hyper-efficient lifestyle.

Function, meet fun.

On Music, and the Joy of Remembering

Two shows, two weeks. Fly By Midnight opened the act at the 9:30 Club, and the cast of The Sound of Music musical brought the crowd to a standing ovation at the Kennedy Center. 

Music for me is a form of temporal travel. The memories and emotions that albums evoke are timeless, and Fly By Midnight transports me back to my early college days, when free time was synonymous with adventure. 

As I sang along to the classics “No Choice” and “Automatic,” I was reminded of the beauty of untetherable joy. Climbing onto the Dupont GUTS to head back to campus, I heard the echoes of new releases soothing my stumbles and urging me to continue “Running” because it is “Better Late Than Sooner.”

And run I did, back to the bucolic countryside of Salzburg, Austria. Of walking along the Salzach River at sunset with family. Of learning “Do-Re-Mi” on the piano. Of watching The Sound of Music, from screen to stage.

The production was thoughtful and intimate, like a conversation with a friend. My favorite performance was the von Trapp children singing “So Long, Farewell,” and I could not stop grinning. Was it the memories of familiarity and home? I am unsure, but I did know that I had not smiled like that in months.

Live music was a part of my life that I had missed since studying abroad. Thanks to GUTS, finding my path back home was a little easier.

On Friendships, and the Meals that Ground Me

Thursday evenings mean dinner at Shamitha’s. At her Rosslyn apartment, she chefs up delicacies from across the globe. Together, we have traversed the Mediterranean, collected Italian basil and savored Indian spices — food and friendships, the twin sustenance of my life.

Hopping off the Lombardi GUTS at Rosslyn, I am a 5-minute stroll from the smell of homemade corn bread with whipped maple butter. With a dozen eggs in hand, I lean against the door. The aroma of freshly grated cheese (specifically, Parmigiano Reggiano, as my friend Dhruv insists) greets me. Forks and knives. The steaming cauldron of mac and cheese. I take a whiff and scan my surroundings, stealing a bite when no one is looking.

 This week’s theme, Comfort Food, feels like Thanksgiving in disguise. We have mashed potatoes, and the warmth from whispering candles and earnest laughter after a long day confirm that autumn’s awe has arrived. I snap a picture of my friends, the reflection in their eyes dancing like the sizzling smoke of s’mores. These are the moments I will remember. Routine, transient yet sweet, like the whipped maple butter I spread, again and again.

On Getting Lost, and the Wonder of Wandering

For the thrill, I stepped on the bus, not knowing the exact destination. Bennie, you are a problem solver. You got this. So when the Capitol Campus GUTS bus pulled into the driveway of the Law Center, I hopped out.

I knew Georgetown acquired the “Darth Vader” building, the dark monolith on 111 Massachusetts Avenue. Having read about its unveiling, I began marching toward Georgetown’s own Super Star Destroyer. In my head, John Williams’ brass section swelled, a perfect soundtrack for a restless Friday rebel.

111 Massachusetts Avenue is a maze. While scouting the floors, I kept bumping into my dean — floor 7, then 6, then 5 — before he finally fled to the Law Center. I laughed to myself. Even my wandering had found a pattern.

Alone at last, I let my eyes drift. Tables filled with curry, samosas and naan; contemporary lounge spaces with Brutalist ceilings, an amalgamation of novelty and structure. In my comfy chair, I turned my gaze from the developing modern urban landscape to the neighborhood’s storied aesthetics. This is what architectural design should aspire to: preserving history and preparing for the future.

By 4 p.m., it was time to return home. Regrettably, I had gotten (much) less work done than I had hoped. Some may conclude that wandering buildings and stuffing yourself with biryani is not exactly productive. Yet, perhaps that was the point.

I thought about this as the bus waited in traffic. I wish I could say my head did not droop from my unproductivity, that these two weeks had cured my addiction to efficiency. I put my AirPods in, nodding along to the Plain English podcast with Derek Thompson. Transportation and podcasts, proof that function can still be fun. Then, I scrolled through my Gcal and accepted the happy hour invite, another Beli bookmark checked! Another step without knowing where it would lead. 

Before I stepped off the bus, I peeked inside my backpack to make sure I had everything. An orange sat inside, waiting. I dug my nails into its skin and peeled without order, tearing, slipping and splattering juice across my hands. What a mess. What a beautiful mess. I smiled. Maybe I will do it again.