In the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Since my companion was considering enrolling in graduate studies in NYC, we had planned a two-week stay there en route to London.
We got to the student accommodation, a big multi-story edifice on the Manhattan's Upper West Side named International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the dining hall, where we grabbed food, found a table, and engaged in conversation with people eating there.
Adjacent to my seat was an Iraqi man pursuing an engineering degree at an Ivy League institution. He wanted to know what I did, and I told him that I had recently completed my studies with a science degree and had been working on studies with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an electron microscope unit at Columbia University – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He proposed that I consider applying for a position with them. I chuckled at the suggestion, saying that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I ventured out, returning to the canteen that night. The engineering student walked over to me and informed me that he had arranged an interview for me with the director of the microscopy lab at Columbia. Since he had made the arrangement, I showed up for the discussion – but straight off told my interviewer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was unable to accept the role.
As is common in NYC – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she said: “We'll handle it. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I also received no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a master’s of international affairs.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his identity, but his incredible act of kindness changed my life in multiple respects. I lacked the courage or nerve to reach out at an Ivy League university and seek a position. Moreover, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but wouldn't have been able to pay for it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that job in New York paved the way for a position in Switzerland where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That helpful person redirected my path in life, and I’m forever grateful.
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