In the final years of the 1980s, I was beginning a backpacking trip to Europe with a companion. Because my travel mate was considering pursuing a master’s degree in the Big Apple, we had booked a fortnight visit there en route to London.
We got to the postgrad residence, a large 10-storey building on the Manhattan's Upper West Side called International House. Setting down our luggage, we headed straight to the cafeteria, where we got some food, sat down, and began chatting with other diners.
Sitting next to me was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at an Ivy League institution. He inquired what I my profession was, and I shared that I had newly finished with a degree in science and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an microscopy facility at the university – adjacent to the engineering faculty, which was why he was aware of it. He recommended that I ought to seek a role with them. I dismissed the idea, saying that I was about to fly to Europe and, more critically, I did not possess a US visa.
The next day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The engineering student approached me and told me that he had organized a discussion for me with the head of the electron microscope unit at Columbia. Since he had gone to the trouble, I attended the interview – but immediately informed my host that I didn’t have a visa, so I was likely not a suitable candidate.
In typical New York fashion – a metropolis where everything seems achievable – she responded: “We can make that happen. What's your start date?” I never got on that flight to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. A perk of the job was that I got complimentary education at Columbia, and I seized the chance to earn a graduate degree in global studies.
I lost touch with him and I am unaware of his name, but his remarkable generosity altered my destiny in so many ways. I would never have had the confidence or self-belief to approach someone at an elite institution and ask for a job. And, I had long dreamed to pursue education overseas, but could never have afforded it without that educational benefit.
What's more, that role at the university led me to a role in Europe where I met my beautiful French husband, with whom I am raising a family of four kids. This was a pivotal life event. That kind stranger redirected my path in life, and I’m always appreciative.
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