Nice Little Reunion Tour with Anisa Libuya Last Night. Great to Catch up at Lil' Pub in Stratford and Know He'll Be in the U.S. for Another Year

During my first years at Fairfield, a student approached me for help with his memoir...a young man from Zambia who was studying economics on campus. He graduated from the University about the same time that Chitunga graduated from high school....2014. I knew he returned to Zambia, started his own business, and married. I did not know he had a daughter and a son, nor that he was back at Fairfield doing an MBA in Analytics. He's been here for a semester.

I reached out to Dean Zhan Li to ask why he was using stock photos for his newsletter, because I kept seeing Anisa in the pictures. Dr. Li said, "Oh, Anisa is back for his Master degree," so I immediately reached out on LinkedIn, set up a dinner time, and had him over to the house. We had good fish dinners, caught up on his wife and kids, and learned his goal of finding employment in the United States if he can (all knowing that these are not the friendliest of times for intellectual folks in the United States. 

It's wild to think about how much occurs in 11 years, including Chitunga's graduation from college, his move to Iowa, the twins starting their jobs, and of course the round of new kids being born to Edem and Kanyea. While Anisa was at Fairfield, he was part of the crew. It was wonderful seeing him again last night and I hope the visits will be more frequent.

When he saw the photo from 2014 he said, "Who, I was that young when I went to Fairfield?" I said, "You still look exactly the same. You just now have facial hair. It happens to the best of us."

Ah, but know we have a Saturday...a Kentucky Derby Day...and I don't need to think about anything but grading and perhaps a mint julep this afternoon (well, 7 pm for the race). 

Loved the unexpected gift last night of a visit and now am wondering where the decade went. Phew. God only knows...when he was here last, I was an assistant professor. 

The times have definitely changed.