During the closing decade of the 80s, I was embarking on a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a friend. Because my travel mate was exploring enrolling in graduate studies in the Big Apple, we had arranged a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We arrived at the graduate housing, a large 10-storey building on the UWS known as International House. After dropping our bags, we went directly to the canteen, where we picked up meals, found a table, and began chatting with people eating there.
Sitting next to me was an Iraqi man studying engineering at a prestigious New York university. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had just graduated with a science degree and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He noted that there was an electron microscope unit at the institution – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I should apply for a position with them. I laughed it off, explaining that I was heading off to Europe and, more critically, I didn’t have a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that after dark. The man from Iraq approached me and let me know that he had arranged an interview for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Because he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but straight off told my prospective employer that I didn’t have a visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
In typical New York fashion – a city where anything feels possible – she declared: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I was employed there for three years. A perk of the job was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I took advantage to complete a postgrad program in international relations.
I lost touch with him and I don’t even know his identity, but his incredible act of kindness transformed my future in numerous aspects. I lacked the courage or self-assurance to approach someone at an prestigious college and seek a position. Moreover, I had consistently hoped to study abroad, but lacked the financial means without that free tuition.
Perhaps most importantly, that job in New York led me to a job in Zurich where I met my wonderful partner, with whom I currently share four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That kind stranger set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
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