During the closing decade of the 80s, I set out on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Because my travel mate was interested in starting a postgraduate program in NYC, we had booked a two-week stay there en route to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side known as International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the cafeteria, where we grabbed food, took a seat, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Beside me was an gentleman from Iraq pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I explained that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been performing experiments using an electron microscope.
He noted that there was an research lab at the university – close to the engineering faculty, which was how he knew about it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, explaining that I was about to fly to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, returning to the canteen that after dark. The man from Iraq approached me and let me know that he had set up a meeting for me with the leader of the research team at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but immediately informed my interviewer that I was without a work permit, so I was unable to accept the role.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she declared: “We can make that happen. When can you start?” I never got on that flight to London.
I held that position for a trio of years. One of the benefits was that I got free tuition at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to earn a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I didn't possess the courage or nerve to contact anyone at an elite institution and ask for a job. Moreover, I had long dreamed to study abroad, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university led me to a position in Switzerland where I encountered my beautiful French husband, with whom I currently share a family of four kids. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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