Homecoming … of sorts

After one week in southern California with family, my young friend Juan Carlos got me to LAX. Actually, he was held up at the doctor's office (I mean, I expected that, didn't I) but he knows the shortcuts and we qualified for the "car-pool lane", so we got there quickly enough.

My route to Rome was by way of London Heathrow, departing Los Angeles on Wednesday afternoon, and arriving in Rome on Thursday night, close to midnight. Two old friends of mine and fellow scholars, Jesus Manuel and José Luis, met me as I came out of Immigration and Customs. We spoke a mixture of Italian and Spanish all the way back to the Salesian Pontifical University (which is on the north side of the city).

On Friday morning I spent some time getting around the university, meeting up with old friends from my previous stays in Rome and Turin, and coming to know the newer group of folks that have come on the scene in the last decade. In fact, it has been a nice homecoming. But now the jetlag is weighing in. I could use a siesta! But first, I need to send an e-mail to my brother Sal: today is his birthday.

Happy Birthday, Sal!