When August came, I packed my belongings into two suitcases. My parents seemed surprised when I declined their offer to drive me to Cambridge.
“I have got it covered,” I told them, wheeling my suitcases to the door.
My mother looked momentarily concerned. “Do you have enough money for the semester, Harper?”
I nodded. “I have been saving.”
My father glanced up from his newspaper. “College is expensive. Do not waste your money on frivolous things.”
That was the extent of their sendoff. Meanwhile, Cassandra was starting her freshman year of high school with a complete wardrobe overhaul and a new MacBook Pro.
The contrast could not have been more stark, but by then I had stopped expecting anything different.
As I closed the door behind me, I felt a strange mixture of sadness and liberation. I was finally going to build a life that was entirely my own.
My first semester at Harvard was a brutal awakening. While many of my classmates were focusing solely on their studies, I was juggling a full course load with three part-time jobs.
I worked at the university library in the mornings, delivered food for a local restaurant between classes, and spent my weekends as a retail associate at a clothing store in Cambridge.
Sleep became a luxury I could rarely afford.
Despite coming from a wealthy family, I received zero financial support. My partial scholarship covered tuition, but everything else—from housing to books to meals—came out of my own pocket.
I lived in the smallest dorm room on campus, ate ramen noodles more often than I care to admit, and became an expert at finding free events that offered complimentary food.
During those early struggles, I met Jessica Rodriguez, a fellow business student who became my closest friend. Jessica came from a single-parent household in Arizona and was also working multiple jobs to make ends meet.
We bonded over our shared financial struggles and became each other’s support system. We would take turns cooking affordable meals in the communal kitchen and split the cost of textbooks whenever possible.
