During the closing decade of the 80s, I was beginning a budget travel adventure to the European continent with a travel partner. Because my travel mate was interested in pursuing a master’s degree in NYC, we had arranged a fortnight visit there before heading to London.
We reached the postgrad residence, a sizeable 10-storey building on the Upper West Side named International House. Once we unpacked, we went directly to the cafeteria, where we picked up meals, sat down, and began chatting with fellow residents.
Adjacent to my seat was an individual of Iraqi origin studying engineering at Columbia University. He asked me what I did for a living, and I told him that I had just graduated with a scientific background and had been performing experiments with electron microscopy.
He mentioned that there was an research lab at Columbia University – adjacent to the school of engineering, which was the reason he was familiar with it. He suggested that I ought to seek a job with them. I dismissed the idea, telling him that I was heading off to Europe and, even more importantly, I lacked a US visa.
The following day I toured the city, going back to the cafeteria that evening. The man from Iraq came up to me and let me know that he had organized a discussion 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 straight off informed my prospective employer that I lacked the necessary visa, so I was probably wasting her time.
Reflecting the city's spirit – a metropolis where opportunities abound – she responded: “That can be arranged. How soon can you begin?” I didn't board the aircraft to London.
I worked there for a trio of years. An advantage of the role was that I was granted no-cost classes at Columbia, and I used the opportunity to complete a graduate degree in global studies.
I never saw that student again and I can't recall his name, but his remarkable generosity changed my life in so many ways. I would never have had the bravery or self-assurance to approach someone at an Ivy League university and ask for a job. Additionally, I had always wanted to take classes in another country, but could never have afforded it without that tuition waiver.
What's more, that role at the university paved the way for a job in Zurich where I got to know my beautiful French husband, with whom I now have four wonderful sons and daughters. It was a total sliding doors moment. That benevolent individual set me on a different course in life, and I’m eternally thankful.
Can you recall the Nicest Thing a Unknown Person Has Ever Done for You?
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