SAM

Sam was born in 1939, New Haven.

It was June 2007 that I met Sam, in a beautiful Italian city. Sam walked up to me out of a classroom, Sam said, "hi, I am Sam." I was surprised to be greeted by someone who is much older yet with so young a smile. He then asked me a bundle of questions, showing the curiosity of a child. Again to my surprise, he knows my supervisor. "I admire his work," he said it with excitement, as if he saw the work in front of him. Shockingly, his book was published in Chinese early 2007 and it was the book I started reading entering my Ph.D. January, 2007, in English. When the crowd ran out of the classroom during lunch time, Sam greeted many others, but I managed to ask him about his interests in a music festival the next day, "I will be there."
It was brazilian drums, bright and rhythmed. Sam did come, with his friend and the son of his friend, "oh Ting, I am glad you make it!" I said the same much louder inside my head.

I saw Sam again last week. He invited me to his workshop with his expenditure and his time. I "bothered" Sam for my experimental design, and for many more questions about life, politics and research. As patient as he is to most others, he answered my questions, even interruptedly over time.
I had to sometimes constrain myself from bothering him too much, not because I feared he would mind, but that he could help others better and others deserve the chance to talk to him.

I salute to Sam because he is not only great in knowledge, wisdom, energy, but also he is non caculative in living his life, and most generous in sharing his happiness with his friends, and offering help and guidance to the weak, such as students and junior researchers, even being an Economist.