A Reunion After 30 Years | Tomoyuki Kojima (Dean, Faculty of Policy Management)
2004.10.25
On October 16, alumni returned to SFC for HCD (Homecoming Day). A wedding ceremony was held for a couple of alumni, and they were celebrated with a performance by an orchestra that included Professor Hiritaka. Speaking of performances, Professor Murai's band also took the stage. In addition to a reunion for former Chinese language students, many professors' labs were bustling with interaction between alumni and current students.
I also had a great time. I participated again this year in the inter-lab futsal tournament, which has become an annual HCD event since last year, and I scored my first goal in the match against the Kumasaka lab! When I slipped and fell, the students from the opposing team rushed over to see if I was okay. I took advantage of that moment to score the tying goal, saving us from defeat! However, it came at a great cost, and my muscles are still sore.
I have many memorable HCDs, but a recent one was a reunion in the United States in November 2001, which took place for the first time in 30 years. For about three years, from 1969 to 1972, I studied abroad in the Doctoral Programs at the University of California, Berkeley. After a few months in a dormitory, I rented a house and lived with American graduate students majoring in Asian studies. These shared living spaces were called "collectives" at the time, and through a network of friends of friends and their acquaintances, I ended up living with nearly 20 male and female students who had no connection to Asian studies at all. It was the era of the anti-Vietnam War movement, and many students abandoned their Asian studies. They have now gone on to become doctors, lawyers, music teachers, and so on. Besides myself, the only one who pursued a research career is a woman who teaches international politics at the University of California, Los Angeles.
In November 2001, I contacted a friend I had lived with and still kept in touch with, telling him I would be stopping by the West Coast on my way to a conference in Boston. We decided to organize a reunion with the people we had lived with. Despite the unsettling atmosphere after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, about 15 people gathered from places like Chicago and Los Angeles. Even though patriotism was on the rise after the attacks, their anti-war sentiment had not faded, and they spoke of the need for caution regarding retaliation through war. Although it was just a one-day reunion, they have been getting together once a year ever since. The emails and attached photos they send describing these gatherings are a joy to see.
(Date of publication: 2004/10/25)