On Tuesday, September 7, we had a special visitor in my Management 309 class. The visitor was not just another guest speaker or study abroad representative, but instead was fellow classmate Ashton Robinson's 10-month-old son Emmett! Our Professor, Dr. Henry Musoma, began the class with asking our class if Emmett would be a distraction, to which we expressed our delight in having a new friend join us.
Ashton dutifully plays the roles of both mom and student, a difficult and sometimes impossible task. Typically during class times, a family member or babysitter will watch Emmett, but her babysitter cancelled last minute Tuesday morning. Ashton emailed Dr. Musoma asking if she could schedule an appointment with him to go over what she was going to miss in class based on the circumstances, to which Dr. Musoma responded with, "Call me." He then proceeded to invite her to bring Emmett to class with her not only that afternoon, but any time she was not able to find a sitter. In class he acknowledged the difficulties of being a parent and student, and applauded Ashton's commitment to her education.
Our class that day was productive, informative, and definitely more entertaining than usual (although Dr. Musoma himself is quite the entertainer)! Later that afternoon, this picture and video started to surface. One of the students in our class recorded and took pictures of the moment as instructed by Dr. Musoma, so Emmett could look back on the day he became an Aggie.
A week later on September 14, we had a few more visitors join our Management 309 class. Mays Business School Dean, Eli Jones, presented Dr. Musoma with the first-ever Mays Business School Spirit Award. Joining and congratulating in the celebration were also Marty Loudder, Associate Dean of Undergraduate Programs; Duane Ireland, Executive Associate Dean; and Wendy Boswell, Head of the Management department. After speechlessly accepting the award, one more special visitor surprised him - his wife.
After pictures, a long round of applause, and excitement still in the air, Dr. Musoma shared a few of his many, many words of wisdom. "When you do kind deeds you never die. So when you are a generous person, you have no fear of death." Dr. Musoma and Ashton had no idea just how far this small act of kindness would continue to go though.
Days later, they received an invitation from Ellen DeGeneres to join her on The Ellen Show. Although news of the kind deed had already gone national, they began to go global. Ellen too fell in love with baby Emmett, and had the opportunity to encourage Ashton in her dedication to being a mom and student by gifting her a check of $10,000.
Lusaka Times picked up the story, and wrote their own piece on the story, highlighting the fact that Zambians are changing the world for good. Dr. Musoma has shared with our class before that he would love to serve his country as president someday (he always laughs after he says it, but I don't think a single one of us would be surprised if he actually does it someday!).
So why does a random act of kindness have the world talking? In the midst of political turmoil, having to wait until November when Taylor Swift releases her full album, and still being in the middle of hurricane season, we just need a reason to smile. If Dr. Musoma's wide-mouthed grin, Ashton's astonishment from continuous generosity, Ellen loving on baby Emmett, and Emmett's precious face doesn't make you smile, there is something wrong with you.
