In the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a companion. Since my travel mate was interested in enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had planned a two-week stay there on the way to London.
We arrived at the postgrad residence, a big ten-floor structure on the Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we made our way to the canteen, where we got some food, took a seat, and began chatting with people eating there.
Beside me was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at Columbia University. He inquired what I did, and I shared that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at the university – adjacent to the engineering department, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I should apply for a role with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The following day I went out exploring, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student came up to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Given that he had made the arrangement, I went to the meeting – but immediately told my host that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where anything feels possible – she responded: “That can be arranged. 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 was granted complimentary education at Columbia, and I took advantage to finish a graduate degree in global studies.
We didn't cross paths after that and I don’t even know his full name, but his incredible act of kindness altered my destiny in so many ways. I lacked the confidence or nerve to reach out at an elite institution and seek a position. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that free tuition.
Critically, that role at the university resulted in 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 helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Stranger Has Once Performed for You?
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