During the final years of the 1980s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to Europe with a travel partner. Since my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in New York, we had planned a 14-day stopover there en route to London.
We reached the student accommodation, a large ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side known as International House. Setting down our luggage, we went directly to the dining hall, where we picked up meals, found a table, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a degree in science and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – close to the engineering department, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I should apply for a job with them. I dismissed the idea, explaining that I was soon departing to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student walked over to me and informed me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but straight off explained to my interviewer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she responded: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I missed my plane to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to finish a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I can't recall his identity, but his remarkable generosity transformed my future in so many ways. I would never have had the courage or self-belief to reach out at an prestigious college and ask for a job. Moreover, I had always wanted to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
What's more, that role at the university resulted in a position in Switzerland where I got to know my handsome spouse from France, with whom I am raising four amazing children. That encounter altered everything. That kind stranger changed my trajectory in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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