Today, I write this in Las Vegas. I am here with my Italian daughter Elisa Bignante, who came to the US for the first time in 10 years to deliver a paper to American Geographer’s Association annual conference. You see, she has a PhD in Geography and a Masters in Economics. This is the same Elisa, some of you may remember, who lived with us for a year in Ephrata as an exchange student in high school.
Needless to say, I am very proud of her and her accomplishments, and unbelievably, she is the same effervescent, exciting and lovable young lady that she was all those years ago. She flew into Tucson last week and after a short stay there, we headed north, first for a day in the Grand Canyon, then on to Las Vegas for the conference. We are having a grand time together, catching up and filling in the holes for the last few years...even though we are both sick with sinus infections that we actually caught separately. Susan will be joining us on Thursday and will take Elisa back with her to Idaho for a few days before she flies back to Italy.
This is a special time to be with her and I was privileged to help her with some of the fine points of her presentation (cleaning up the English language just a little bit). Her subject was the integration of traditional and modern medicines in Tanzania for the Maasi and Mero people. Of course to undertake such a subject, she has to spend some time in Africa. In fact, she flew back to Italy from Africa only a few days before flying here.
I don’t think I have ever written about my children here in this blog, and it is perhaps long overdue as I am proud of them all: Eric, who serves in both the US Border Patrol and is a sergeant in the US Army Reserves (combat medicine); Kristen who works in an investment banking firm in Chicago; Aimee who is married with a 9-month old son and teaches vocal music in Pocatello; and, of course Elisa.
I once read that the most prestigious title that any man can ever lay claim to is “Dad.” I believe that now.
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