Benjamin Voller-Brown

How I met the cube

Benjamin Voller-Brown (15, USA)

It was a cold Spring day, Mandarin characters flying through the room. The characters spinning in my head, however, were not the only thing spinning in that classroom. The bright flashes of color grab at my vision. It was a strange cube. Colors changing by the second, each moment showed a different color. I was stunned, shocked and amazed. The colors flew from side to side. In what seemed like no time later, it was all the same color. I was stunned, shocked and amazed. I asked what it was; I hadn’t heard the name in years. It was a Rubik’s Cube. I asked my classmate if he had another one, and he did! After turning it for what seemed like hours, but was only a few minutes, I was hooked. With something to fiddle with in class, I was able to pay more attention. Previously, I had been easily distracted. In contrast, with the cube I paid more attention.

Distractions came easy for me in school. My mind just seems to drift while I’m in class. On that first day I experienced the power of the cube. For the next week I played with the cube in class, while still paying attention. Each turn kept me hooked. No longer distracted, I was able to focus in class — I got an A on the next test! As soon as I got home at the end of that miraculous week I told my mother that I had been playing with a Rubik’s cube. Later that night, they brought home the first cube of my own cube; not the fastest, not the most expensive, but certainly the most memorable. The first week I met the cube changed who I was. I became engaged, more alert and more studious.

Not only that, but since meeting the cube, I have grown closer to my best friend. He had been struggling with his classes and free time because he was taking 3 Advanced Placement classes. While seeing him solve, I noticed a smile on his face for the first time in weeks. He was finally able to forget about schoolwork and have fun. His face was identical to mine with every new turn. It was a mixture of strong concentration mixed with pure joy. Meeting the cube cemented our friendship. If I would not have noticed that magic cube of colors on that cold Spring day, everything would be different.