No. 54 - Alma Mater

This evening I am returning to my alma mater to attend a Networking and Etiquette Dinner. This is an annual program geared toward juniors and seniors in the college of business. It gives them an opportunity to interact with business professionals before and during dinner. The program includes instructions on proper etiquette while eating although, at my table, I downplay the part about which hand implement to use with various courses of food. I thinks it's quite pompous to have 3 forks, 2 spoons, and 2 knives for a single person to eat a meal. What a waste! I stress the importance of the dinner conversation and looking the person in the eye when speaking. I'm impressed with the students who, in the middle of the week, leave the cozy confines of their dorm rooms, get dressed up and attend these programs. These are some of our future business leaders and I enjoy having dinner with them.

I learned that the word alma mater is Latin for "nourishing mother." It was used in ancient Rome as a title for various mother goddesses and, apparently, in Medieval Christianity for the Virgin Mary.