there’s something beautiful when there is free food in the 3rd floor atrium of the mcgovern neuroscience buliding at mit.

scientists and students and professors of all ages and states of business will stop, run towards the table, look around surreptitiously to see if someone is judging them for taking free food, grin quietly, and grab themselves a little snack.

their friends will be walking out behind them, yell “ooo snacks?” in their chosen language (and isn’t that beautiful? that when I walk into the lab I hear people gossiping in mandarin or asking for a reagent in korean or german) and the two smile at each other.

today, I walked out into the atrium to take a meeting and immediately i zeroed in on a few boxes of chips and dip — but alas! they were covered. I look around, everyone in the building was eyeing it: someone from the top floors (since the atrium goes all the way up to the glass-paned roof) was peeking down; two guys in the corner laughing also glanced at it… no one dared to be the first to grab the food.

one singular brave soul grabbed a croissant. voila! it was like everyone magically stood up, wordless coordination, taking the plates they just… happen to have in their backpacks (?) just for this occasion.

it’s cute, even

free food really just brings people together like nothing else <3